Investors in Beyond Meat, Inc. (NASDAQ:BYND) had a good week, as its shares rose 6.4% to close at US$6.53 following the release of its quarterly results. The results were mixed overall, with revenues slightly ahead of analyst estimates at US$93m. Statutory losses by contrast were 3.6% larger than predictions at US$0.53 per share. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Beyond Meat after the latest results.

Following the latest results, Beyond Meat's ten analysts are now forecasting revenues of US$328.4m in 2024. This would be a modest 3.4% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. The loss per share is expected to greatly reduce in the near future, narrowing 54% to US$2.21. Before this latest report, the consensus had been expecting revenues of US$322.4m and US$2.22 per share in losses.

The consensus price target was unchanged at US$5.56, suggesting that the business - losses and all - is executing in line with estimates. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. There are some variant perceptions on Beyond Meat, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$8.00 and the most bearish at US$3.00 per share. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. It's clear from the latest estimates that Beyond Meat's rate of growth is expected to accelerate meaningfully, with the forecast 6.8% annualised revenue growth to the end of 2024 noticeably faster than its historical growth of 3.6% p.a. over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 3.1% annually. It seems obvious that, while the growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, the analysts also expect Beyond Meat to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts reconfirmed their loss per share estimates for next year. Happily, there were no major changes to revenue forecasts, with the business still expected to grow faster than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have estimates - from multiple Beyond Meat analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

It is also worth noting that we have found 3 warning signs for Beyond Meat (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that you need to take into consideration.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.