E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 36.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,543 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $81,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 109.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 22,559,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,176,913,000 after purchasing an additional 11,779,162 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 1,148.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,596,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,480,000 after purchasing an additional 2,388,798 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Monster Beverage by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,760,341,000 after buying an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $73,600,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in 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 worth $1,416,048,000 after buying an additional 1,229,789 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MNST opened at $48.28 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $52.16 and its 200 day moving average is $51.23. The stock has a market cap of $46.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.74. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year high of $61.22. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Monster Beverage

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total value of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This represents a 11.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MNST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Monster Beverage in a research report on Friday, December 6th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. BNP Paribas dropped their price objective on Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Monster Beverage from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.42.

Monster Beverage 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.