Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) Shares Sold by Exchange Capital Management Inc.

Exchange Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 142,234 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,556 shares during the period. Monster Beverage comprises approximately 1.5% of Exchange Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Exchange Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $8,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in Monster Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 34.6% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 774 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in Monster Beverage by 40.8% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 272.5% during the 4th quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the company's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.55, for a total value of $38,584,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 777,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,542,532. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 9.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on MNST shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Monster Beverage from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.32.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

NASDAQ:MNST traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $54.09. 4,177,481 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,606,609. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $47.13 and a twelve month high of $61.22. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $56.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 20.74% and a net margin of 22.83%. Monster Beverage's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.38 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Monster Beverage Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in development, marketing, sale, and distribution of energy drink beverages and concentrates in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Monster Energy Drinks, Strategic Brands, Alcohol Brands, and Other.

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