Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND) layoffs are the talk of Wall Street after it announced it is cutting 19% of its non-production employees after disclosing slowed growth in its fiscal third quarter. Indeed, the plant-based meat company announced Thursday its job cuts will amount to the reduction of roughly 65 workers and is part of a wider corporate evaluation.
The news comes as seemingly the latest cost-cutting effort from the food maker as it attempts to reconcile with weakening revenue. Indeed, Beyond Meat has stated it expects revenue of about $75 million for the quarter ended in September, an 8.5% reduction from the same quarter last year. The company also expects full-year net revenue between $330 million and $340 million, a 19% to 21% decline from 2022.
“We anticipated a modest return to growth in the third quarter of 2023 that did not occur,” said Ethan Brown, President and Chief Executive of Beyond Meat.
Some analysts are speculating this suggests growing weakness in the plant-based protein market.
Beyond Meat Layoffs Prove Bullish for BYND Stock
Despite the seemingly bearish news, BYND stock has been surging on the news. Indeed, BYND is up over 18% at the time of writing, though the stock is still in the red about 44% year-to-date (YTD).
Beyond Meat has had something of a turbulent past few years. Since July 2021, BYND has seemingly been in freefall, shedding nearly 95% of its value. Currently, Beyond Meat is trading for $6.94 per share, a far cry from its July 2019 peak of $234.
Given the company’s financial issues, the stock’s path forward is unclear. Though, clearly, some investors see promise in today’s layoff announcement, given the stock’s surprise surge on the news.
However, according to InvestorPlace contributor Alex Sirois, Beyond Meat may just be a “Doomed” stock.
“Trying to make plants into meat simply doesn’t work. It lacks mass appeal and more importantly, the business model produces steep losses on a sustained basis,” Sirois wrote.
On the date of publication, Shrey Dua did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
