What happened
Shares of plant-based meat alternatives purveyor Beyond Meat (BYND +13.22%) are growing higher in morning trading Tuesday, up 4.9% as of 10:20 a.m. EDT, after investment banker Piper Sandler raised its price target on the stock. Of course, Piper only raised its price target to $178, which is about $5 lower than what Beyond Meat shares currently cost.
So why is this good news for Beyond Meat stock?
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
Well, for one thing, consider the size of the price target hike. Previously, Piper had posited only a $130 price target for Beyond Meat stock. Today's new price target represents a 37% jump in the stock's estimated value.
There's also the reason that Piper raised its target in the first place. After conducting its semiannual survey of teen likes and dislikes, according to TheFly.com, Piper Sandler noted that out of almost 10,000 teens surveyed, 47% either already eat or are willing to try eating plant-based meat, with Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods being two of their most recognized brands. Piper noted that openness to trying new things -- such as vegetable-based protein instead of animal-based protein, has an inverse relationship to age.
More simply: Kids are more willing to try new stuff.
Now what
Shocker, right? And yet, the implication is that after trying Beyond Meat products, these kids might continue eating (and buying) the company's products as they grow up -- such that Beyond Meat might no longer be new in a few years, and everybody will be eating it.
That's a recipe for cooking up a growth stock, and investors like it a lot.
