Beyond Meat misses quarterly expectations as faux meat demand slides

 Beyond Meat missed market expectations for quarterly revenue and posted a wider-than-expected loss on Wednesday, hurt by relentless weakness in demand for plant-based meat.

The company, which also supplies its plant-based patties to fast food chains such as McDonald's and Yum! Brands , has been offering steeper discounts, as consumer sentiment about plant-based meat and its health benefits took a beating.

In August, Beyond Meat cited data from trade association Food Marketing Institute which showed the percentage of consumers in the U.S. who believe plant-based meats are healthy dropped from 50% to 38% from 2020 to 2022.

Net revenue for the third quarter fell 8.7% to $75.3 million, compared with analysts' average estimate of revenue of $85.4 million, as per LSEG data.

The company's shares, which have fallen almost 45% so far this year, were down marginally in extended trade.

"Consumers in the U.S. haven't fully warmed up to plant-based protein alternatives like Beyond Meat... because the products currently available on the market don't live up to shoppers' standards for taste and flavor," said Rachel Wolff, a senior analyst at Insider Intelligence.

With household budgets pinched by sticky inflation, consumers have also swayed to cheaper animal proteins instead of pricier plant-based alternatives.

Earlier this month, the company trimmed its annual revenue forecast and lowered its gross margin expectations. The company also announced fresh job cuts as part of a cost-reduction plan. For the period ended Sept. 30, Beyond Meat posted a loss of $1.09 per share, compared with market expectations of a loss of 89 cents per share.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-beyond-meat-misses-quarterly-211131126.html