Celsius Holdings Stock Falls After Another Analyst’s Revenue Cut, Retail Sentiment Sours

Shares of energy drink maker Celsius Holdings, Inc. (CELH) dropped 2% on Wednesday after another Wall Street analyst slashed revenue estimates, further dampening investor sentiment.

Maxim Group analyst Anthony Vendetti maintained a ‘Buy’ rating and a $50 price target on Celsius, but lowered the Q3 revenue forecast to $265 million from $280 million. The analyst also revised the earnings per share (EPS) projection down to $0.01 loss from a gain of $0.03.

Vendetti cited the company’s need to ramp up trade promotions to fend off fierce competition in the energy drink market, which has tempered revenue expectations.

The analyst also cut Celsius’ 2025 revenue outlook from $1.70 billion to $1.59 billion, reflecting long-term headwinds.

The stock has struggled since Celsius revealed a sharp decline in sales through its primary distributor, PepsiCo (PEP), despite a 10% increase in scanner data and depletions this quarter.

Sales through PepsiCo are down $100 million to $120 million compared to last year, causing several Wall Street analysts to lower their sales forecasts and raise concerns about weakening demand in a challenging consumer environment.

Both Morgan Stanley and Piper Sandler followed suit with their own cuts on Tuesday, citing the PepsiCo inventory reduction.

Morgan Stanley dropped its Q3 sales estimate for Celsius by 8% and cut its gross margin forecast by 250 basis points to 46.4%. Piper Sandler reduced its price target from $50 to $47, while maintaining an ‘Overweight’ rating.

CELH stock has plunged more than 45% year-to-date, weighed down by inflationary pressures and reduced demand for non-essential beverages like energy drinks.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment turned ‘bearish’ (36/100) and message volume spiked to extremely high levels, placing Celsius among the top-trending tickers on Wednesday afternoon.

Retail investor frustrations are also mounting. One Stocktwits user expressed doubts about CEO John Fieldly’s leadership, adding that the next earnings report would be a key catalyst.

Another user echoed concerns about the company’s slowing earnings growth trajectory.

Celsius is due to report its next earnings report in November, with analysts expecting an EPS of $0.09 and revenue of $304.91 million.

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