Plant-based meat maker Beyond Meat Inc has recorded a net revenue rise of approximately 11% for the quarter that ended on April 3.
Wider Quarterly Loss Than Expected
However, Beyond Meat recorded a wider quarterly loss than expected, as the plant-based meat maker incurred higher freight costs, spent heavily on testing new product launches, and sold less to pandemic-hit restaurants.
Stockpiling Benefit
Last year, the company, which sells faux meat in over 100,000 outlets worldwide, benefitted from consumers stockpiling their freezers with bulk packages of its "burgers" during stay-at-home orders across the US.
Sales To Restaurants
However, sales to restaurants took a hit as many closed. Beyond Meat CEO Ethan Brown said during a call with analysts that he is seeing a "slow thaw" of that trend.
Food Service Business Recovery Expectation
Even so, Beyond Meat is expecting the recovery in its food service business to lag the broader restaurant sector because it sells in many places where capacity is recovering more slowly, including sports venues.
Higher Costs For Warehousing
As restaurant sales fell, the company accumulated more pea protein, leading to higher costs for warehousing, it said.
Second Quarter Revenue Expectation
Beyond Meat is expecting second quarter revenue in the range of $135 million to $150 million, a rise of 19% to 32%. Analysts had forecast revenue of $142.8 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
First Quarter Net Revenue Figures
In the first quarter ended April 3, net revenue rose by approximately 11% to $108.2 million, missing estimates of $113.7 million.
Loss Per Share
Excluding one-time items, it lost 42 cents per share, which was wider than analysts' expectations of 19 cents.
Net Loss
Its bottom line swung to a net loss of $26.8 million from a profit of $1.8 million a year ago.
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