Will Monster Beverage (MNST) Continue to Rally Into Earnings?

This week we are looking at another of the Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) Top 50 List companies.  We use this list in one of our options portfolios to spot outperforming stocks and place option spreads that take advantage of the momentum.

Terry

Will Monster Beverage (MNST) Continue to Rally Into Earnings?

Zack’s recently published an article outlining reasons why they believe Monster Beverage is a good investment. Take a look at the article here – Here’s Why Monster Beverage is a Hot Investment Pick. Also, take a look at the following article which discusses the involvement of hedge funds in the stock – Did Hedge Funds Drop the Ball on Monster Beverage?

MNST is testing some resistance found at $66.25 but the recent price action appears to show strength. Indeed, the horizontal level has been holding sellers, but each decline from the level has become increasingly narrow which often is indicative of breakout potential. So far, the stock has tested the level three times. Triple tops are rare, especially in strong uptrends like the one MSNT has been experiencing as of late.

MNST Chart July 2019

If you agree there’s further upside ahead for MNST, consider this trade which is a bet that the stock will continue to advance over the next five weeks, at least a little bit.

Buy To Open MNST 09AUG19 63 Puts (MNST190809P63)
Sell To Open MNST 09AUG19 66 Puts (MNST190809P66) for a credit of $1.12 (selling a vertical)

This price was $0.02 less than the mid-point of the option spread when MNST was trading near $66.  Unless the stock rallies quickly from here, you should be able to get close to this amount.

Your commission on this trade will only be $2.50 per spread (the rate charged by thinkorswim for Terry’s Tips’ subscribers).  Each contract would then yield $109.50 and your broker would charge a $300 maintenance fee, making your investment $190.50 ($300 – $109.50).  If MNST closes at any price above $66 on August 09, both options would expire worthless, and your return on the spread would be 57% (650% annualized).

Changes to Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) Top 50 This Week:

IBD Underlying Updates July 4, 2019

We have found that the Investor’s Business Daily Top 50 List has been a reliable source of stocks that are likely to move higher in the short run.  Recent additions to the list might be particularly good choices for this strategy, and deletions might be good indicators for exiting a position that you might already have on that stock.

As with all investments, you should only make option trades with money that you can truly afford to lose.

Happy trading,

Terry