Cumberland Partners Ltd Invests $1.78 Million in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Cumberland Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 33,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,776,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Monster Beverage by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,742,390 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,760,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,168,379 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its position in shares of Monster Beverage by 4.7% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 11,779,162 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Monster Beverage by 3.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,728,086 shares of the company’s stock worth $817,490,000 after buying an additional 473,418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Monster Beverage by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,898,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,365,000 after acquiring an additional 596,078 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MNST. UBS Group cut their price objective on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Monster Beverage from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.65, for a total transaction of $526,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,944,748.60. This represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Monster Beverage Stock Performance

MNST stock opened at $51.69 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.95. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Monster Beverage Co. has a 12-month low of $43.32 and a 12-month high of $61.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.74.

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.