Arizona State Retirement System Sells 2,713 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 209,151 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,713 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $10,993,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 154,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 7,780 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.6% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 251,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,124,000 after acquiring an additional 15,611 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.7% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 151,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,897,000 after acquiring an additional 9,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Monster Beverage in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,090,000. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on MNST shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Argus increased 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.83.

Monster Beverage Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MNST opened at $55.69 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 twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $61.22. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $50.50 and its 200-day moving average is $51.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.70, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.74.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Monster Beverage

In related news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total value of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 76,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,220,011.38. This represents a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total value of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,944,748.60. The trade was a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Monster Beverage Company 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.