California Public Employees Retirement System Has $52.24 Million Stock Position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 993,849 shares of the company’s stock after selling 85,627 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $52,237,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its stake in Monster Beverage by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 405,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,310,000 after buying an additional 13,999 shares during the period. Allstate Corp bought a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,130,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 13,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $685,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS lifted its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 168,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,830,000 after purchasing an additional 13,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 0.9 %

MNST opened at $59.04 on Wednesday. Monster Beverage Co. has a twelve month low of $43.32 and a twelve month high of $59.07. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $52.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.53. The stock has a market cap of $57.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.85, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.71. 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 (NASDAQ:MNST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.38 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Monster Beverage Co. will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.27, for a total value of $552,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,994,528.71. The trade was a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Emelie Tirre sold 91,316 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.38, for a total transaction of $5,057,080.08. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 208,316 shares of company stock valued at $11,484,440 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Monster Beverage in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Monster Beverage from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Monster Beverage from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.83.

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.