Pollock Investment Advisors LLC Makes New $378,000 Investment in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Pollock Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 7,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $378,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of MNST. State Street Corp grew its stake 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 purchasing an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 27,142,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,416,048,000 after buying an additional 1,229,789 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,176,913,000 after buying an additional 11,779,162 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 3.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,728,086 shares of the company’s stock worth $817,490,000 after buying an additional 473,418 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Monster Beverage by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,002,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,371,000 after acquiring an additional 143,871 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 48,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.89, for a total value of $2,634,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 296,846 shares in the company, valued at $16,293,876.94. This trade represents a 13.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 76,201 shares in the company, valued at $4,220,011.38. The trade was a 54.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 186,316 shares of company stock valued at $10,277,740. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on MNST shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BNP Paribas lowered their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.83.

Monster Beverage Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Monster Beverage stock opened at $55.09 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $50.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.76. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1 year low of $43.32 and a 1 year high of $61.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a current ratio of 3.13. The company has a market capitalization of $53.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.31, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71.

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

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.