Hartford Investment Management Co. Decreases Stake in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Hartford Investment Management Co. cut its stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 2.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 44,335 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,096 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $2,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MNST. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 2.1% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,461,000 after buying an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Monster Beverage by 2.3% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 48,536 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. Vicus Capital acquired a new position in Monster Beverage in the first quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Founders Financial Securities LLC increased its stake in Monster Beverage by 5.1% in the first quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 10,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $634,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Monster Beverage by 6.1% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 54,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,257,000 after purchasing an additional 3,146 shares in the last quarter. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on MNST shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $56.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Roth Mkm cut their target price on Monster Beverage from $56.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Monster Beverage from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on Monster Beverage from $59.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.68.

Monster Beverage Stock Down 0.2 %

MNST stock opened at $53.44 on Friday. Monster Beverage Co. has a one year low of $43.32 and a one year high of $61.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a current ratio of 3.41. The company has a fifty day moving average of $50.13 and a 200-day moving average of $51.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.67 billion, a PE ratio of 33.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74.

Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.04). Monster Beverage had a net margin of 22.84% and a return on equity of 22.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. Monster Beverage’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

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.