Ninety One UK Ltd Lowers Stock Holdings in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Ninety One UK Ltd lowered its stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,555,243 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,688 shares during the period. Monster Beverage accounts for about 1.2% of Ninety One UK Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Ninety One UK Ltd’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $449,664,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 109.3% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,176,913,000 after acquiring an additional 11,779,162 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its position in Monster Beverage by 250.9% during the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 3,468,660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,801,000 after purchasing an additional 2,480,291 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Monster Beverage by 1,148.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,596,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,480,000 after purchasing an additional 2,388,798 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,760,341,000 after buying an additional 2,168,379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the third quarter worth approximately $73,600,000. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total transaction of $526,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

NASDAQ MNST opened at $46.61 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $51.54 and its 200 day moving average is $51.17. Monster Beverage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.32 and a fifty-two week high of $61.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.13. The company has a market capitalization of $45.33 billion, a PE ratio of 29.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.42.

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.