Beyond Meat shares fall 4% on larger-than-expected loss, third quarter warning



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Shares of Beyond Meat Inc. fell 4% in extended trading on Thursday after the plant-based meat maker posted a larger-than-expected tax loss in the second quarter and issued a warning in the third quarter.

Beyond BYND Meat,
-0.80%
Thursday reported a net loss of $ 19.65 million, or 31 cents per share, compared with a net loss of $ 10.2 million, or 16 cents per share, in the quarter a year earlier.

Revenue improved 32% to $ 149.4 million from $ 113.3 million a year ago.

Analysts polled by FactSet had expected a net loss of 23 cents a share on revenue of $ 141 million.

“We are delighted to report record net revenues and the resumption of food service growth as our customers welcome consumers back to their establishments. We are also proud of our retail performance, where we delivered year-over-year growth despite rising demand last year due to panic buying from consumers, ”said the director. Beyond Meat general Ethan Brown in a statement announcing the results.

But Beyond warned of “the near-term uncertainty related to COVID-19 and its potential impact on retail and restaurant demand levels” that could drive revenues of $ 120 million to $ 140 million in the third. quarter – well below the $ 152.9 million forecast by FactSet.

An increase in infection rates due to the COVID-19 Delta variant could mark a return to more cautious approaches in the food industry, Beyond’s chief financial officer Phil Hardin told analysts in a conference call Thursday evening. . “There continues to be uncertainty” about consumers keeping a distance from restaurants as well as a reduction in inventory orders, he said.

Second quarter results ended an eventful week for the largest producer of plant-based meat. On Tuesday, Hopdoddy Burger Bar announced it will serve Beyond products at the burger chain’s 32 stores in Texas, Arizona, California, Colorado and Tennessee. Earlier, Brown told the BBC he supported a tax on meat. “The whole notion of a Pigouvian tax, which is to tax negatively, you know, things that are rich in externalities, I think that’s interesting,” he said. “I’m not an economist, but by and large I am attracted to that sort of thing.

Americans, too, find vegetable meat more appealing. Retail sales of plant-based foods have jumped 43% in the past two years, outpacing growth in total food sales by nine times, according to Impossible Food Inc.’s 2021 state report. meat in foodservice this week. Sales of meat of plant origin increased by 45% last year.

Beyond stock is down 2% so far in 2021. The broader S&P 500 SPX index,
+ 0.60%
gained 18% this year.

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