Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Increases Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 53,437 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,345 shares during the quarter. Monster Beverage makes up about 0.6% of Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $3,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 19,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after acquiring an additional 1,482 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 112.2% during the 3rd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 195,272 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,339,000 after acquiring an additional 103,271 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $7,340,000. Defender Capital LLC. grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 30.2% during the 4th quarter. Defender Capital LLC. now owns 371,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,378,000 after acquiring an additional 86,050 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter valued at $1,848,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ MNST traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $53.55. The company had a trading volume of 3,702,282 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,330,296. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $57.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.57. The stock has a market cap of $55.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.72. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1 year low of $47.13 and a 1 year high of $61.22.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 22.84% and a return on equity of 20.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.28 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 659,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.55, for a total transaction of $38,584,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 777,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,542,532. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 9.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective 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. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.11.

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.