Beyond Meat Inc.'s wild meme-stock ride has taken another twist after the meat-substitute company surprised investors with preliminary third-quarter results, sending its shares surging.
After dropping to its lowest price on record late last week, the heavily shorted stock (BYND) went on a blistering retail-fueled rally that saw it skyrocket nearly 300% before paring some of those gains as the week progressed. Beyond Meat shares ended Thursday's session down 20.7%, but are climbing more than 11% in recent premarket trading on Friday, lifted by the company's preliminary results.
Beyond Meat said in an 8-K filing Friday that it expects third-quarter revenue to be approximately $70 million, in line with the company's previous guidance range of $68 million to $73 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were looking for revenue of $68.7 billion, on average.
Beyond Meat's gross margin, a measure of profit, is expected to be approximately 10% to 11%, including approximately $1.7 million of expenses related to the suspension and cessation of activities in China. Excluding these charges, gross margin is expected to be in the range of approximately 12% to 13%, Beyond Meat said. The company had reported gross margin of 11.5% in the second quarter.
For the three months ending Sept. 27, operating expenses are expected to be in the range of approximately $41 million to $43 million, including approximately $2 million of charges related to non-routine items that include legal expenses associated with a contractual dispute with a former co-manufacturer. Excluding these charges, operating expenses are expected to be in the range of approximately $39 million to $41 million.
The company, which reports its full third-quarter results on Nov. 4, also expects to record a "material" non-cash impairment charge related to certain of its long-lived assets, but is not yet able to quantify the amount.
The El Segundo, Calif.-based company emerged as something of a prepandemic darling amid buzz around plant-based meat, sending its stock surging to a record closing high of $234.90 on July 26, 2019. However, the stock has collapsed almost 99% since then as Beyond Meat struggled with weak demand for its products.
Beyond Meat shares have fallen 24.5% in 2025, compared with the S&P 500 index's SPX gain of 14.6%.