ProShare Advisors LLC Purchases 188,903 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 18.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,203,470 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 188,903 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Monster Beverage worth $63,254,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,214,000. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 5.3% during 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 period. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at about $423,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at about $557,000. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,262,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,340,000 after acquiring an additional 77,278 shares during the period. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

NASDAQ MNST opened at $62.33 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $60.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.96, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $58.34 and a 200-day moving average of $54.17. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year high of $62.46.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The company’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Monster Beverage currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.50.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total transaction of $5,057,080.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 76,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,220,011.38. This trade represents a 54.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total transaction of $552,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 72,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,994,528.71. The trade was a 12.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440. Corporate insiders own 8.30% of the company’s stock.

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.