Nomura Holdings Inc. Purchases 21,797 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) by 49.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 66,259 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,797 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $3,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company's stock worth $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 7,780 shares during the period. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth $423,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth $557,000. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,262,180 shares of the company's stock worth $66,340,000 after acquiring an additional 77,278 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 0.1%

NASDAQ:MNST traded up $0.04 on Monday, hitting $62.90. 4,009,498 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,966,950. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $58.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 3.13 and a quick ratio of 2.51. Monster Beverage Co. has a 52 week low of $43.32 and a 52 week high of $63.25. The company has a market cap of $61.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.63.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on MNST shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.50, for a total value of $654,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 296,846 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,178,107. This represents a 3.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total transaction of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 76,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,220,011.38. The trade was a 54.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440 in the last three months. 8.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Monster Beverage

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.