Monster Beverage Corp (MNST), The Coca-Cola Company (KO) & PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP): Will April Showers Bring May Flowers for This Beverage Maker?

Ironically, Monster Beverages was formerly known as Hansen’s Natural, which sold natural juices and regular sodas. This high-octane transformation, however, has been very profitable for the company, as seen in the following comparison of top and bottom-line growth to The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO), PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP) and coffee giant Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX).

That kind of growth is what more mature companies such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo need to reinvigorate their portfolios again. Although Coca-Cola was briefly rumored to be interested in acquiring Monster last year, it has decided to compete with its own energy drinks, such as Full Throttle, NOS, Surge and Vault. Pepsi introduced energy drinks Amp and Kickstart, along with another iteration of its “high-voltage” Mountain Dew. Yet none of these products have deterred Monster Energy or Red Bull’s growth. This indicates that Monster has a quality that The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s whole business is built on – brand loyalty.

Monster built that brand loyalty by promoting its products at extreme sporting events, carving out a niche as an “extreme” energy drink. It’s a tactic that Pepsi has desperately imitated with its Mountain Dew brand, albeit with limited success. By endorsing extreme athletes instead of mainstream ones, Monster has cultivated an image of a scrappy underdog – a David versus the twin Goliaths of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE:PEP).