Deutsche Bank downgraded Celsius Holdings on Thursday, citing mounting concerns over the energy drink maker’s recovery prospects and pushing back the timeline for a meaningful rebound to at least 2027.
The bank lowered its rating on the company to Hold from Buy, while raising its price target to $35 from $30. The new target remains below Celsius’s current trading price of $35.23, which has gained roughly 30% over the past month amid investor speculation about potential operational or governance changes.
Analyst Steve Powers at Deutsche Bank noted that the March upgrade had anticipated execution risks already reflected in the stock’s nearly 40% drop earlier this year. Since then, fundamental challenges have deepened, with Q2 2026 results showing a 12% year-over-year decline in brand performance, partly due to a 7-percentage-point drag from inventory rebalancing in the direct-store-delivery channel.
Deutsche Bank also highlighted that management has pushed recovery expectations into fiscal 2027, suggesting durable improvement is unlikely before then. The bank cautioned that recent stock strength, driven by shareholder and activist pressure for changes, may not be sustainable without concrete operational progress.
Peer analysts have also adjusted their outlooks. Stephens reduced its target to $50 from $65 but retained an above-average rating, while Bernstein cut its target to $26 from $44 and downgraded the stock to Market Perform. Piper Sandler maintained an above-average rating with a $36 target.
Celsius closed at $35.23 on Wednesday, down 0.31% for the session, and was indicated 2.27% lower in pre-market trading on Thursday.
