Fifth Third Bancorp Purchases 18,227 Shares of Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST)

Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Monster Beverage Co. (NASDAQ:MNST) by 7.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 252,572 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 18,227 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Monster Beverage were worth $13,275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bennett Selby Investments LP grew its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Bennett Selby Investments LP now owns 9,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 528 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Monster Beverage by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 6,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Monster Beverage during the fourth quarter worth about $1,214,000. Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new position in shares of Monster Beverage in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,155,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Monster Beverage by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 359,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,889,000 after purchasing an additional 24,752 shares in the last quarter. 72.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MNST has been the subject of several research reports. BNP Paribas lowered their price objective on shares of Monster Beverage from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Monster Beverage from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Monster Beverage from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Monster Beverage from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Monster Beverage in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Monster Beverage has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.42.

Monster Beverage Stock Up 0.4 %

MNST stock opened at $48.28 on Friday. Monster Beverage Co. has a 1-year low of $43.32 and a 1-year high of $61.22. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $52.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.22. The company has a current ratio of 3.13, a quick ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.95 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Monster Beverage news, CFO Thomas J. Kelly sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,924 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.80% of the company’s stock.

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.