By Uday Sampath Kumar and Hilary Russ
(Reuters) – Plant-based meat company Beyond Meat Inc forecast third-quarter revenue below estimates on Thursday, as a resurgence in COVID-19 infections threatens to pull consumers away from restaurants.
Shares of the California-based company fell nearly 5% in extended trading.
“Given the recent uptick of COVID-19 cases, which could disrupt demand patterns, we believe caution for the balance of the year generally remains appropriate,” Chief Executive Officer Ethan Brown said in a statement.
The company said it expects third-quarter net revenue of $120 million to $140 million, compared with analysts’ estimates of $153.3 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
In the second quarter ended July 3, the faux beef and chicken maker reported that sales in restaurants, dining halls and other food service venues were finally back in growth mode after taking a big hit earlier in the pandemic, when dining rooms shuttered and restaurants streamlined menus.
Increased restaurant sales drove overall net revenues up 31.8% to $149.4 million in the second quarter, exceeding estimates of $140.8 million.
Even so, Beyond Meat also reported a bigger-than-expected loss, with earnings per share of negative $0.31 versus estimates of minus $0.24.
The company is adding new products, markets and production capacity as it seeks to boost sales.
It revamped its faux hamburger product and brought back a chicken offering with the launch of plant-based chicken tenders in July.
Retail sales fell slightly in the United States but rose in international markets during the quarter.
(Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru and Hilary Russ in New York; Editing by Will Dunham and Devika Syamnath)
