Cibc World Market Inc. Raises Holdings in Monster Beverage Corporation $MNST

Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ:MNST) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 210,876 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,004 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $16,168,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 136.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in Monster Beverage by 1,338.7% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 446 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Monster Beverage during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Monster Beverage during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Monster Beverage during the third quarter valued at $45,000. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Monster Beverage Trading Up 1.1%

Monster Beverage stock opened at $89.55 on Friday. Monster Beverage Corporation has a 12-month low of $58.09 and a 12-month high of $90.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $80.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.58 billion, a PE ratio of 43.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.54.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Monster Beverage had a net margin of 23.11% and a return on equity of 26.86%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Monster Beverage Corporation will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Monster Beverage announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, May 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 0.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MNST. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $87.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Argus boosted their price objective on Monster Beverage from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $100.00 price objective on Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Monster Beverage in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.05.

Insider Transactions at Monster Beverage

In other news, Director Mark J. Hall sold 54,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.81, for a total value of $4,633,740.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 299,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,678,299.26. This represents a 15.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.81, for a total value of $614,670.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 62,553 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,492,778.93. This represents a 10.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 159,700 shares of company stock worth $13,730,462. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Monster Beverage Profile

Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ: MNST) is an American beverage company best known for its Monster Energy brand of energy drinks. The company’s product portfolio centers on carbonated energy beverages and a range of complementary ready-to-drink offerings, including energy coffees, hydration beverages and other flavored functional drinks. Monster markets multiple sub-brands and flavor variants to address different consumer segments and consumption occasions.

Originally organized around the Hansen’s Natural line of juices and sodas, the company pivoted toward the energy drink category and formally adopted the Monster Beverage name in the early 2010s to reflect its strategic focus.