Empower Advisory Group LLC Increases Stock Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,262,180 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 77,278 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Monster Beverage worth $66,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,760,341,000 after buying an additional 2,168,379 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in Monster Beverage by 4.7% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 27,142,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,416,048,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229,789 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,176,913,000 after buying an additional 11,779,162 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,728,086 shares of the company’s stock valued at $817,490,000 after buying an additional 473,418 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 18.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,898,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,365,000 after acquiring an additional 596,078 shares during the period. 72.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In related news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total transaction of $526,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MNST shares. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Monster Beverage from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus upped their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. BNP Paribas reduced their price objective on Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Two 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.53.

Monster Beverage Stock Down 0.5 %

MNST stock opened at $49.25 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $50.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $50.97. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $47.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.74. Monster Beverage Co. has a one year low of $43.32 and a one year high of $61.22.

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.