Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02), Zacks reports. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 23.31% and a net margin of 21.66%.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

MNST traded up $0.27 on Thursday, hitting $51.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,480,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,427,759. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.08. The firm has a market cap of $50.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.74. Monster Beverage has a 12 month low of $43.32 and a 12 month high of $61.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 7.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Monster Beverage in a report on Friday, December 6th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.53.

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.