After reporting another disappointing quarter on Thursday, Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ:BYND) announced layoffs that further emphasize the gloomy picture on Wall Street.
A decline in revenue and revised projection were in line with a recent critical analysis by JP Morgan analysts, which also evaluated Beyond’s troubled partnership with McDonald’s Corp. (MCD).
Compared to a net loss of $19.7 million, or 31 cents per share, in the same period last year, the producer of plant-based meat products reported a net loss of $97.1 million, or $1.53 per share. At $147 million, net revenue decreased 1.6% from $149.4 million in the prior year.
According to FactSet’s survey of analysts, a net loss of $1.28 per share on $149.2 million in revenue was anticipated.
Following the announcement of the data, Beyond Meat’s shares (BYND) initially declined 6% in Thursday’s after-hours trading before bouncing back to slightly increase after falling 8% to $31.39 during the regular session.
In a statement releasing the findings, Beyond Meat Chief Executive Ethan Brown said, “we take note of this powerful reminder and continue to advance as well as broaden cost reduction activities in service to realizing price parity.”
In addition to announcing a 4% employment decrease to save $8 million annually, Brown said, “We are tightly focused on intensifying OpEx and manufacturing cost reductions.”
Executives from Beyond continued to express concern about the persistent unpredictability surrounding macroeconomic issues, such as inflation and rising interest rates, COVID-19 and its possible effects on consumer demand and behavior, labor availability, and supply-chain disruptions, which may be related to recent geopolitical tensions.
In addition, Beyond provided a sales forecast for fiscal 2022 of between $470 million and $520 million; analysts surveyed by FactSet anticipate $553.9 million.
Sales are slowing down, and what appears to be a tense relationship with commercial partner McDonald’s has taken a toll on Beyond’s stock. Beyond’s stock has lost 52% of its value so far in 2022, while the S&P 500 index (SPX) has lost 13%.
The McPlant was not on the menu when JPMorgan analysts surveyed employees at 25 McDonald’s outlets where it had previously been sold.
Beyond Meat was the most recent stock to be added to the independent equity research firm New Constructs’ list of “zombie stocks” earlier this week.
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