UBS Group AG Grows Stock Position in Beyond Meat, Inc. $BYND

Key Points

• UBS Group AG sharply increased its stake in Beyond Meat, boosting its holdings by 674.8% in the fourth quarter to 9.79 million shares, worth about $8.0 million. Institutional investors now own 52.48% of the company.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including CFO Lubi Kutua and insider Teri L. Witteman, both through pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans. Insider ownership stands at just 1.90%.
• Analysts remain very bearish on Beyond Meat, with an average rating of “Strong Sell” and a target price of $0.83. The stock was trading around $0.76, while the company reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss and revenue roughly in line with estimates.

UBS Group AG raised its position in Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ:BYND - Free Report) by 674.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,788,528 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 8,525,183 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned approximately 2.16% of Beyond Meat worth $8,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of BYND. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Beyond Meat during the first quarter worth $590,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Beyond Meat by 28.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,729 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 16,044 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Beyond Meat in the second quarter valued at $70,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Beyond Meat by 15.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,843,998 shares of the company's stock worth $6,437,000 after buying an additional 250,628 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Beyond Meat by 66.4% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 27,378 shares of the company's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 10,924 shares in the last quarter. 52.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Beyond Meat

In related news, CFO Lubi Kutua sold 419,042 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $0.60, for a total value of $251,425.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,749,967 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,449,980.20. This trade represents a 6.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Teri L. Witteman sold 29,978 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.00, for a total transaction of $29,978.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,178,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,178,194. This represents a 0.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Beyond Meat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Beyond Meat from $1.00 to $0.50 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research cut Beyond Meat from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Beyond Meat from $4.00 to $1.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Strong Sell" and an average target price of $0.83.

Beyond Meat Trading Down 5.2%

Beyond Meat stock opened at $0.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $392.74 million, a P/E ratio of -0.34 and a beta of 2.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $0.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $0.91. Beyond Meat, Inc. has a 52 week low of $0.50 and a 52 week high of $7.69.

Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.12) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $58.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.02 million. Beyond Meat had a negative return on equity of 54.39% and a net margin of 54.95%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Beyond Meat, Inc. will post -0.35 EPS for the current year.

Beyond Meat Company Profile

Beyond Meat, Inc NASDAQ: BYND develops, manufactures and sells plant-based meat substitutes designed to replicate the taste, texture and appearance of animal-based proteins. Since its founding in 2009 by Ethan Brown and initial public offering in 2019, the company has focused on leveraging proprietary technology and ingredient blends to produce a suite of products that cater to both retail and foodservice channels. Beyond Meat's mission centers on offering more sustainable protein options by reducing reliance on livestock farming and its associated environmental footprint.

The company's product portfolio includes Beyond Burger, Beyond Sausage, Beyond Beef and Beyond Chicken, each formulated to appeal to a broad range of consumers seeking meat alternatives without compromising on flavor or cooking versatility.

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