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I remember like it was yesterday, although this was more than 5 years ago.  I was trading options on and off again.  I wasn't really doing complex options strategies, primarily just trading directional and I was hoping to make Netflix my next victim.  At the time Netflix was trading under $100, around $90 if I can recall.  I felt there was downside risk, so I sold some puts.  Price was going in my favor until Netflix, specifically Carl Icahn  made headlines.  

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Carl Icahn disclosed in a filing that he bought a 10% stake in Netflix saying that the shares are "undervalued." The in 2011, Netflix increased their prices and about million customers cancelled their subscription as the company has struggled to regain the faith of its customers. Netflix's profits have fallen as it has expanded aggressively outside the U.S.  For the most recent earnings quarter at that time, Netflix recently reported an 88% drop in profit and lowered its expectations for subscriber additions.  But on the Carl Icahn news, which he got most of stake when the price was around $60, the stock closed the day up about 20% at $79.  I knew right then I should of reversed my trade to follow the Smart Money, but I didn't.  Three years later, Carl cashed out for $2 billion in profits. 

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  <center><a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/liyanchen/2015/06/24/heres-how-carl-icahn-made-2-billion-on-netflix-charts/#71d503a4113d">Source Image</a></center>

Needless to say, if you had invested $100 at the beginning of this century in shares of Netflix, your position would be worth more than $23,000 today.  However, since the beginning of the century, would you believe Monster Beverage Corporation has had a better return.  If you had invested $100 at the beginning of this century in shares of Monster, you position would be worth $62,000.

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<center><a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/netflix-shares-have-surged-23000-since-the-turn-of-the-century-but-thats-nothing-compared-with-the-top-performer-2019-11-05?siteid=yhoof2&yptr=yahoo">Source Image</a></center>

That’s right, the energy-drink company with the black and neon green label has dominated all other stocks in the S&P 500 index, returning almost 62,000 percent over the period.  Last week, Monster reported their third quarter earnings. 

<blockquote>

Energy-drink maker Monster Beverage (MNST) reported third-quarter earnings after the close that topped expectations, helped by a new "fitness-focused beverage," even as a measure of gross profit slipped. But Monster Beverage stock fell after hours.

Monster Beverage earned 55 cents during the quarter, up 14% and just above expectations for 54 cents. Net sales rose 11.6% to $1.13 billion. That topped forecasts for $1.106 billion.

Gross profit, as a percentage of those sales, slipped to 59.4% from 59.8% a year earlier. Price increases helped mitigate the gross-profit decline.

But Monster's growth has lagged the broader energy industry, as rivals nip at its market share, Cowen said in a research note last month, raising concerns about Monster's longer-term prospects in the U.S.
</blockquote>

<center><a href="https://www.investors.com/news/monster-beverage-earnings-q3-2019-monster-beverage-stock/?src=A00220&yptr=yahoo">Source Image</a></center>

So where is price heading next, lets go to the charts?  

Monster is still in a secular uptrend, but has been in a $25 range the last couple of years?

![](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmRaDjVji74GcXB53hRSJ1RkPMjLTkzAiSWNaakX64YFhz/image.png)

Thus, Monster appears to be a great candidate for an iron condor.  An iron condor is an options strategy created with four options consisting of two puts (one long and one short) and two calls (one long and one short), and four strike prices, all with the same expiration date. The goal is to profit from low volatility in the underlying asset.

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This post is my personal opinion. I’m not a financial advisor, this isn't financial advise. Do your own research before making investment decisions.

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