Meat-substitute company more than triples sales from the same quarter a year ago and produces $4.1 million in GAAP profit
Beyond Meat Inc. shares fell in after-hours trading Monday despite an earnings report that showed the company’s first quarterly profit in history.
The meat-substitute company reported a third-quarter profit of $4.1 million, or 6 cents a share, on sales of $92 million, up from a loss of $9.3 million on revenue of $26.3 million in the same quarter a year ago. The analyst consensus called for profit of 4 cents a share on sales of $82.2 million, according to FactSet.
“After 10 years of aggressively investing in our science and product innovation, this is the first quarter we have generated net income,” Executive Chairman Seth Goldman said in a conference call Monday afternoon. “It is a wonderful validation from consumers who support our business strategy of building meat directly from plants.”
The company also increased its annual revenue forecast for the second consecutive quarter, and now expects full-year sales of $265 million to $275 million. In July, the company raised its target to $240 million from $210 million.
Beyond Meat BYND, +4.56% shares, which rampaged to more than $200 in July after an initial public offering in May that priced shares at $25 apiece, fell more than 5% in late trading immediately after the report hit. The stock has retreated since the last earnings report, when Beyond Meat announced a secondary stock offering that eventually sold insiders’ shares for $160 apiece.
Even more Beyond Meat shares could hit the market starting Tuesday, as the lockup period that precludes Beyond Meat employees and early investors from selling their shares ends. While many of those investors were able to sell in the secondary offering, they will now be able to sell more on the open market. Goldman noted the end of the lockup on the call Monday.
“While we recognize short-term reactions to these milestones are often marked by heightened uncertainty, we believe that Beyond Meat is in a stronger position today than at any other time in its history,” he said.
Shares have declined 55% in the past three months, but closed Monday with a 4.6% increase at $105.41, which gave the company a market capitalization of about $6.4 billion. In late trading, shares fell lower than $100 a share.
Since the July report, Beyond Meat has announced new leadership including a chief operating officer who previously worked for Tesla Inc. TSLA, -0.13% and a new chief marketing officer from Coca-Cola Co. KO, -0.33% . In summing up the results released Monday, Chief Executive Ethan Brown focused on the logistical and branding opportunities with which those executives will be tasked.
“We remain focused on expanding our distribution footprint, both domestically and abroad, building our brand, introducing new innovative products into the marketplace, and bolstering our infrastructure and internal capabilities to fuel our future growth,” Brown said in prepared remarks.
In a separate regulatory filing Monday afternoon, Beyond Meat disclosed that board member Gregory Bohlen resigned as a director last week. Bohlen, managing director for Union Grove Venture Partners, had a seat on Beyond Meat’s board since 2013 and sold more than 72,000 shares in the secondary stock offering while holding on to roughly 725,000 shares.
Brown said the departure had been planned when asked about it in the conference call, and the filing stated that it was not the result of a disagreement with the company nor how it is being run. The board will shrink from 10 members to nine, Goldman said on the conference call.