UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) Stock

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $53.00 to $57.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. UBS Group's price target indicates a potential upside of 5.44% from the stock's current price.

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A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on MNST. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Friday. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas decreased their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.47.

Read Our Latest Research Report on MNST

Monster Beverage Price Performance

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Shares of NASDAQ:MNST opened at $54.06 on Monday. The company's fifty day moving average is $50.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.21. 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 has a 12-month low of $43.32 and a 12-month high of $61.22. The company has a market cap of $52.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.74.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). Monster Beverage had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 23.31%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. Equities analysts expect that Monster Beverage will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

• Monster Beverage Is a Scary Good Deal at Current Levels

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of Monster Beverage stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total transaction of $526,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,944,748.60. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 7.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Monster Beverage

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Monster Beverage by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,760,341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 27,142,970 shares of the company's stock worth $1,416,048,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229,789 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company's stock worth $1,176,913,000 after purchasing an additional 11,779,162 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Monster Beverage by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,112,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $897,012,000 after buying an additional 1,383,914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,590,994 shares of the company's stock valued at $451,543,000 after purchasing an additional 734,406 shares during the period. 72.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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