Drink Maker Celsius, CFO Should Face Accounting Suit, Judge Says

A pair of pension plans successfully stated securities fraud claims against Celsius Holdings Inc. and its chief financial officer and should be allowed to proceed with their proposed class suit, a magistrate judge recommended.

But the institutional investors’ claims against CEO John Fieldly must be dismissed because they don’t show he was aware of alleged accounting improprieties, Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart said Monday. His conclusions came in a report to Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks of the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

A separate derivative suit was filed Jan. 11, also alleging the company incorrectly valued stock ...