Former chairman of Cisco and CEO John Chambers has recently been seen to take a very excited approach over the largely positive reception to Beyond Meats initial public offering that occurred on Thursday. Two years ago to the day, Chambers who has become somewhat of a venture
capitalist took a stake in a cricket farm operation operated by Aspire Food group. Aspire uses crickets to create a wide range of protein packed organic produce. Beyond Meats well received IPO validates the move into a new beginning of the alternative food movement and boosts the valuations of companies just like Aspire.
Chamber’s in a recent interview has shared his excitement by saying “I am a huge believer in the space. Two years ago I bet on crickets as a major source of protein, I am glad Beyond Meat shares popped today — they are a disruptor.” We are sure the management team and everyone involved with Beyond Meat will be sleeping extremely well on the back of this great start for the company. Beyond Meat saw shares of the company rocket upwards over 160% from $25 in their debut on the NASDAQ on Thursday. The company after their very successful first day of trading ended the day with a market cap of $3.8 Billion USD.
The huge positive trend around Beyond Meat is largely a reflection of the change in eating habits that many of the younger generation or millennials are taking. The majority of the new generation are saying goodbye to beef, lamb, and other meat products and welcoming plant based alternatives. CEO of Beyond Meat Ethan Brown commented after the IPO that he will not be the type of man to stare at the stock price all day, and he would much rather focus on leading the business down the great path it is setting. “We really are focused on our business and on executing against our strategy. I’m going to try to drive the growth and value of the business by focusing on the fundamentals,” he said in an interview. He went on to add that it is a pleasure to see the market reward the company for their innovative thinking and movement into an alternative future.
What investors need to be aware of is that Beyond Meat as a company has never been a profitable one. Going over the figures from 2018 the company made losses of $29.9 million against $87.9 million in sales. The next move for Beyond Meat to create a sustainable future for their business is to create a dynamic range of products and to increase their distribution channels.
Michelle Morris – IEC International