Beyond Meat trims the fat, raises prices and cuts Q2 loss by a third

Increased efforts to trim expenses and cash consumption enabled Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND) to cut its losses by more than a third in Q2, driving shares up more than 4% in Wednesday’s after-hours trading.

“We are pleased to report a strong quarter of progress against our 2024 plan, a pivotal year on our path to sustainable operations and profitability,” CEO Ethan Brown said.

The company reported a loss of $0.53 per share, narrower than a loss of $0.83 per share reported last year but a penny below expectations. Sales of $93.2M were down 8.8% due to a decline in volume sold, partially offset by an increase in per pound of product. This beat estimates, however, by almost $5M. Adjusted EBITDA was a loss of $23.0M, or -24.7% of net revenues, compared to a loss of $40.8M, or -40% of net revenues, in the year-ago period.

By segment, U.S. foodservice revenues were down 18.9%, retail channel sales were down 7.5%, international retail channel sales were down 12.1%, and international foodservice channel sales were down 2.5%

The volume of product sold dropped much more dramatically in the U.S. versus international as the company sold 23.1% less in U.S. retail and 20% less in U.S. foodservice compared to a decline of 5.5% in international retail and a decline of just 1.4% in international foodservice.

The outlook for 2024 includes net revenue of $320M to $340M compared to $343.4M in 2023. Gross margin is expected to be in the mid-teens range, and capital expenditure is targeted for $15M to $20M.