By acquiring a rapidly expanding competitor last year, the overall business could boost its growth going forward.
The top two brands in this industry have commanding market share, which introduces an ultimate cap on this company’s long-term potential.
Investors will have to weigh the bull and bear cases to decide what to do with the stock.
Past results are no guarantee of future returns. All stock market investors are familiar with this principle. However, it's still interesting to look at businesses whose shares have performed extremely well in the past. Maybe they could make for worthy investment candidates today.
There's one consumer discretionary stock that has skyrocketed 6,300% in the past decade (as of March 6), turning a $1,000 starting sum into $64,000 today (as of March 6). Investors need to know the bull and bear case.
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The historical growth trajectory of Celsius (NASDAQ: CELH) is incredible. The health-focused energy drink company reported annualized revenue growth of 78% between 2019 and 2024. Last year, it acquired Alani Nu -- a better-for-you beverage business targeted to women -- for more than $1.6 billion, to bolster its offerings. This brand alone put up a 101% year-over-year retail sales gain in 2025, further supporting the growth for the overall company.
In 2022, Celsius entered into a partnership with PepsiCo, allowing the beverage giant to handle distribution. This will help Celsius and Alani Nu continue to broaden their reach.
Celsius is also putting significant effort into its branding initiatives, which is critical in a market like this. It leans on influencers to connect with consumers. And it just announced the creation of its own in-house branding agency to drive creative efforts.
The bull case is supported by Alani Nu's success, the PepsiCo partnership, and effective marketing tactics.
One of the most notable bearish risks rests on competition. The Celsius brand saw its retail sales stagnate over the second half of 2025. With Alani Nu and Rockstar Energy, which it acquired in August, the market share of the total entity of 19.8% is still well behind the leaders in the industry, Red Bull (35.9% market share) and Monster Beverage (27.3%).
These two competing brands certainly resonate strongly with consumers around the globe. Consequently, Celsius' ultimate potential could be limited, with the best days of growth in the past. It's also easy to argue that there isn't yet a durable moat. And barriers to entry appear to be low, which opens up the door to newer brands launching in the future.
The current valuation also adds to the bear case. Celsius shares are trading 55% below their peak. But they're still expensive. Investors are being asked to pay a forward price-to-earnings of 28.4. That's much higher than the overall stock market.
Celsius' ascent is nothing short of spectacular. But the gains will slow. The consensus view among sell-side analysts is that earnings per share will increase at a compound annual rate of just 10% between 2026 and 2028, which provides a starting point that accounts for the full integration of the 2025 acquisitions.
Add this to the valuation, coupled with the intensely competitive nature of the industry, and I'm not buying Celsius shares today.
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Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Celsius and Monster Beverage. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.