Rockstar Energy founder builds Celsius stake, wants to take over as CEO
Rockstar Energy founder Russ Savage told CNBC he now controls 12 million shares of Celsius Holdings, amounting to roughly 4.7% of the energy drink company.
Russ Savage, the billionaire founder of Rockstar Energy, has amassed a substantial stake of over 12 million shares in Celsius Holdings, expressing concerns over the company's recent earnings disappointment and suggesting a CEO change. Celsius, which specializes in energy drinks for athletes and health-conscious consumers, has experienced significant growth in recent years.
The tech billionaire, who sold his stake in Rockstar to PepsiCo in 2020 for over $4 billion, has been quietly advising Celsius for the past year to overhaul its cost structure and marketing strategy. Savage now claims that the current management, including the CEO, COO, brand manager, and marketing manager, should be replaced. "The CEO, the COO, the brand manager and the marketing manager all need to be fired," Savage told CNBC.
Despite Celsius' assertion of continued demand and resilience, its stock plummeted 18% following a second-quarter earnings report that fell short of analyst expectations. In its earnings call, Celsius CEO John Fieldly cited product rationalization and innovation delays as reasons for the shortfall, attributing the loss of shelf space to strategic partnerships.
Savage, who has been providing advisory guidance to Celsius for over a year, suggests that a single, highly focused leader is needed to steer the company back on track. He is publicly offering to assume the role of CEO, emphasizing his hands-on management style from his early days at Rockstar.
Written by urgent.news from CNBC's reporting — not their text. Machine-written; read the original for the full account.
