Beyond Meat Stock Dives On Wider-Than-Expected Q4 Loss, Workforce Cuts And China Operations Halt — Retail Stays Optimistic

Shares of Beyond Meat Inc. (BYND) fell over 5% in after-hours trading Wednesday after the plant-based meat company reported a wider-than-expected Q4 loss and announced a restructuring plan, including workforce cuts and the suspension of operations in China. However, retail sentiment remained upbeat despite the news.

Beyond Meat’s Q4 loss per share came in at $0.65, wider than the $0.54 expected by analysts, according to Stocktwits data. Revenue came in at $76.66 million, topping expectations of $75.32 million.

As part of the restructuring, Beyond Meat plans to cut 44 jobs in North America and the EU, representing about 6% of its global workforce. It estimates to incur one-time cash charges of about $1 million to $1.5 million in connection with the layoffs, the company said.

The suspension of its current operational activities in China, including job cuts, will incur one-time cash charges of about $0.5 million to $1 million, it added.

Beyond Meat President and CEO Ethan Brown said the company was pursuing four main goals in 2025: “produce comparable year-over-year top line net revenues” as it focuses on “sustainable operations;” improve gross margin to up to 30%; further reduce operating expenses over the two-year period; and “strengthen” its balance sheet to improve liquidity and optimize its capital structure.

“We are pursuing these four measures with considerable confidence in the long-term growth of the global plant-based meat industry and our leadership position therein,” Brown said.

Sentiment on Stocktwits continued in the ‘bullish’ zone compared to a week ago. Message volume inched up in the ‘high’ territory.

One bullish commenter was optimistic about the year-on-year positive guidance.

For 2025, it expects net revenues in the range of $320 million to $335 million. That compares to consensus estimates of $331.78 million. Its first-quarter net revenues are expected to be comparable to net revenues in the first quarter of 2024, the company said.

Operating expenses are expected to be in the range of $160 million to $180 million.

Founded in 2009, Beyond Meat’s products are designed to have the same taste and texture as animal-based meat.

Beyond Meat stock is down 5.3% year-to-date.

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