Celsius (CELH) is building a cup base with a buy point of 118.29. Shares reclaimed their 50-day moving average last week and are holding above that key level. Volume surged as they cut past the 10- and 50-day lines. The somewhat asymmetric cup of this energy drink stock has a near-ideal depth of 34%.

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Celsius is on the carefully selected IBD 50 and IBD Leaderboard lists of growth stocks that are proving to be market leaders.

The energy drink stock ranks 9th in the Beverage-Non-Alcoholic group, which holds 60th place among IBD’s 197 industry groups. The Boca Raton, Fla.-based company has a less-than-ideal 74 Composite Rating as a result of erratic profit performance in the last year.

However, the Relative Strength Rating of 97 confirms the defensive play’s popularity with investors, placing it at or above 97% of all publicly traded stocks. Its RS line is also at a 52-week high, showing superior performance compared to the S&P 500.

Energy Drinks Drive Strong Partnerships

Third-quarter sales grew to $188.2 million, a whopping 98% year-over-year increase. However, the 28 cents-per-share loss for the quarter was steeper than the prior year’s 13-cent loss.

One reason for the mixed results: Celsius sells energy drinks and protein bars, which tend to perform according to seasonal variations. The third quarter may be a seasonally-weak period, with folks taking summer breaks and students heading back to class.

Last week, it announced a multiyear deal with the Professional Fighters League (PFL), the second largest mixed martial