Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Purchases Shares of 114,983 Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 114,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,044,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,112,000 shares of the company's stock worth $897,012,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383,914 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,590,994 shares of the company's stock valued at $451,543,000 after purchasing an additional 734,406 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at about $442,642,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 659.1% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,872,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,231,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,716,603 shares of the company's stock valued at $247,905,000 after purchasing an additional 818,476 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.39.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MNST traded up $0.87 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $60.12. The stock had a trading volume of 5,227,475 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,037,360. Monster Beverage Co. has a 52 week low of $43.32 and a 52 week high of $60.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.57.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 72,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,994,528.71. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Guy Carling sold 47,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total transaction of $2,585,940.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,210,054.86. This represents a 68.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by 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.