Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $62.96 and last traded at $62.82, with a volume of 684540 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $62.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on MNST. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Monster Beverage from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group raised their price target on Monster Beverage from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Monster Beverage presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.50.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $61.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.26. 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 (NASDAQ:MNST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. Monster Beverage had a return on equity of 23.31% and a net margin of 21.66%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 48,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.89, for a total transaction of $2,634,720.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at $16,293,876.94. The trade was a 13.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total value of $552,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,273 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,528.71. This represents a 12.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440. Insiders own 8.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MNST. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its holdings in Monster Beverage by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 528 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Monster Beverage during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.