What happened
Shares of Beyond Meat (BYND -1.46%) surged sharply higher Tuesday, jumping as much as 9.1%. As of 1:31 p.m. ET, the stock was still up 8.2%.
The catalyst that sent the maker of plant-based meat substitutes higher was bullish commentary courtesy of a Wall Street analyst who believes the company has an opportunity just over the horizon.
So what
Piper Sandler analyst Michael Lavery upgraded Beyond Meat from underweight (sell) to neutral (hold), while simultaneously raising his price target to $64 from $61. It's worth noting that he's is playing catch-up, since Beyond Meat stock had a closing price of $63.42 on Monday.
Image source: Getty Images.
Lavery said he now believes the McDonald's (MCD 0.47%) McPlant burger -- supplied by Beyond Meat -- will debut nationwide in the first quarter of 2022, sooner than he had anticipated. McDonald's has been testing the McPlant in eight restaurants across the country and Lavery cited "industry contacts" who say the plant-based burger will be available at 14,000 McDonald's restaurants in the U.S. within the coming three months.
The analyst also raised his 2022 full-year sales forecast for Beyond Meat to $600 million, up from $565 million, an increase of about 6%. To give this some context, analysts' consensus estimates clock in at $616.9 million, so his estimates still appear to be lagging behind the pack.
Now what
Earlier this year, the company announced a three-year strategic partnership with McDonald's that made Beyond Meat the "preferred supplier" for the McPlant burger. The collaboration will also explore additional plant-based menu items for the popular burger chain, including chicken, pork, and egg.
The McPlant burger was co-developed by Beyond Meat and McDonald's, and is "made from plant-based ingredients like peas, rice, and potatoes," and is served exclusively at McDonald's. It's also worth noting that the McPlant burger is already on the menu in a number of McDonald's international markets, including Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, and most recently the U.K.
The McPlant is off to a good start and if it continues to catch on, this would be another win for Beyond Meat -- and its stock could keep cookin'.
