Russ Savage, founder of Rockstar Energy, has accumulated more than 12 million shares of Celsius Holdings, representing approximately 4.7% ownership valued at roughly $300 million at current market prices. Savage, who founded Rockstar in 2001 and sold the company to PepsiCo in 2020 for over $4 billion, is publicly advocating for significant leadership changes at the beverage company.
Savage’s push for change follows Celsius’s second-quarter earnings announcement earlier this week, which fell short of analyst expectations. The company reported earnings of 36 cents per share against expectations of 43 cents, while revenue reached $817.9 million compared to the anticipated $870 million. Net income dropped by more than half relative to the same quarter the previous year, causing Celsius shares to decline 18% on Thursday. CEO John Fieldly attributed the shortfall to a product rationalization program and deliberate pause in innovation efforts, citing the company’s integration of acquisitions including Alani Nu and the Rockstar brand as contributing factors.
Savage has been informally advising Celsius on cost structure and marketing strategy for over a year, but says his recommendations were largely disregarded. He contends the company maintains excessive management layers and insufficient accountability, and argues that Celsius made a critical error by reducing shelf space for existing products. He emphasized that losing retail shelf space in the competitive energy drink market is extremely difficult to recover.
Offering himself as a replacement CEO, Savage stated he would implement the hands-on, detail-oriented management approach he employed while building Rockstar. He began acquiring his current stake in March when stock prices fell to the low $30 range and maintains that management missteps have prevented the recovery he anticipated. Celsius responded by stating it welcomes value-creating suggestions from shareholders and noted that board members and management have engaged with Savage multiple times over recent years. The company currently holds a 20% share of the U.S. energy drink market.
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