Companies and Brands

Why Analysts Changed Views on Monster Beverage After Earnings

Thinkstock

Drinks maker Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) got thumped pretty hard after reporting quarterly results that missed consensus estimates after markets closed Thursday. Analysts were looking for $0.82 in earnings per share (EPS) on $698.40 million in revenue, nicely above the same period in 2014 when Monster posted EPS of $0.72 and $605.57 million in revenue.

Instead profits came in at $0.67 a share and revenues totaled $645.4 million. Monster’s CEO attributed the weak results to “choppy” implementation of the company’s distribution switch to Coca-Cola.

Price targets were cut by several analysts, though ratings were unchanged:

  • Cowen cut its price target from $170 to $165 and has an Outperform rating.
  • Goldman Sachs cut its price target from $174 to $157 and maintains a Buy rating.
  • Stifel lowered its price target from $170 to $160.
  • SunTrust Robinson cut its price target from $155 to $130 with a Neutral rating.
  • Susquehanna cut its price target from $131 to $117 and has a Neutral rating on the stock.
  • UBS lowered its price target from $175 to $165 with a Buy rating.


Shares closed at $130.79 on Friday, down about 1.7%, after dropping as low as $126.64 earlier in the day. The stock’s 52-week range is $113.08 to $160.50, and the consensus price target is $154.60, although some of these recent changes may not yet be included in that number.

Are You Still Paying With a Debit Card?

The average American spends $17,274 on debit cards a year, and it’s a HUGE mistake. First, debit cards don’t have the same fraud protections as credit cards. Once your money is gone, it’s gone. But more importantly you can actually get something back from this spending every time you swipe.

Issuers are handing out wild bonuses right now. With some you can earn up to 5% back on every purchase. That’s like getting a 5% discount on everything you buy!

Our top pick is kind of hard to imagine. Not only does it pay up to 5% back, it also includes a $200 cash back reward in the first six months, a 0% intro APR, and…. $0 annual fee. It’s quite literally free money for any one that uses a card regularly. Click here to learn more!

 

Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings to provide coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.

AI Portfolio

Discover Our Top AI Stocks

Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.

You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.