What to expect when Beyond Meat (BYND) reports Q4 earnings this week

Shares of Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ: BYND) were down 6% on Tuesday. The stock has gained 35% year-to-date. The plant-based food products company is set to report its fourth quarter 2022 earnings results on Thursday, February 23, after market close. Here’s a look at what to expect from the report:

Revenue

Analysts are projecting revenue of $75.8 million for Beyond Meat in Q4 2022. This compares to revenue of $100.7 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2021. In the third quarter of 2022, revenue decreased 22.5% year-over-year to $82.5 million.

Earnings

Analysts are predicting a loss of $1.18 per share for the fourth quarter of 2022. This is narrower than the loss of $1.27 per share reported in the same period a year ago and $1.60 per share reported in the third quarter of 2022.

Points to note

Beyond Meat has been operating in a challenging environment that has taken a toll on its top line. Sales have been declining over the past two quarters as inflation and category-related headwinds have impacted demand.

Amid rising costs, consumers prefer to purchase lower-cost proteins than to pay more for plant-based products. They are also focused more on keeping grocery purchases at affordable levels rather than following health or environmental fads. Household penetration for the plant-based meat category fell for a second consecutive quarter in Q3, dropping by around 20 basis points sequentially.

Beyond Meat has also been dealing with rising competition in the plant-based food products category. However, the difficult demand environment has led many brands to exit the category and the company anticipates the playing field is likely to thin out in the mid-term.

The company’s profitability continues to be impacted by higher manufacturing costs as well as increased materials and logistics costs. It is working on reducing its operating expenses and rationalizing its production network to deal with an anticipated slowdown in growth.

Click here to read the full transcript of Beyond Meat’s Q3 2022 earnings conference call