Kestra Investment Management LLC Acquires New Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $124,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MNST. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 11,779,162 shares in the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its holdings 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 worth $178,801,000 after acquiring an additional 2,480,291 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings 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 worth $135,480,000 after acquiring an additional 2,388,798 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,760,341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Monster Beverage during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $73,600,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MNST opened at $51.21 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 3.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.32 and a fifty-two week high of $61.22. The stock has a market cap of $49.80 billion, a PE ratio of 32.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.74. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.96.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,944,748.60. This represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas reduced their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment 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, Monster Beverage currently 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.