How Is Beyond Burger 3.0 Different and Will It Bring BYND Stock Up?

Beyond Meat Inc. (NASDAQ:BYND) stock has had a tumultuous run over the past few months. The most recent peak occurred in October 2020 when shares were trading for $194.95. Now, the stock is down 30.79 percent at $135.01 per share. Could the company's latest iteration, the Beyond Burger 3.0, change the trajectory?

Let's see what's new about the Beyond Burger 3.0, and whether or not it could help BYND stock rebound. 

According to the company, the Beyond Burger 3.0 is both healthier and cheaper. 

Compared to the previous version (2.0), the new burger has six fewer grams of fat, one gram fewer of saturated fat, 50 fewer calories, and equal protein. Despite the health-conscious improvements, the company says that the new version is juicer and meatier.

As for price, Beyond Meat is decreasing the per-patty costs in an effort to compete with animal beef. A pack of four burgers now retails for about $10, which equates to $2.50 per patty. When the company first launched its line of meatless burgers, it charged $4 per patty. So, this is a huge improvement for the average grocery shopper.

How do you know that you're getting the new version of the meatless burger? If you see the package at the grocery store, look for a red label that says "New Meatier Taste" and a green label that says "35% less sat. fat" than animal beef. 

The plant-based meat stock has been responding mildly well in the short term—this week alone, BYND shares have gone up 1.83 percent. However, that's a bandage for the sell-off that occurred late last year. 

A short-term resurgence might not be imminent for Beyond, especially given that UBS analysts just downgraded the stock from a hold to sell. The analysts think that the security is overvalued. However, that doesn't mean the stock can't thrive over a longer time horizon.

At the same time, Beyond Meat announced the brand-new burger variant, it also announced the Plant-Based Diet Initiative Fund at the Stanford University School of Medicine. 

Over the next five years, the fund will support "peer-reviewed, clinically-significant studies on the health implications of a plant-based diet, including plant-based meat, and will help to generate data to drive and inform Beyond Meat’s research and development," according to a press release.

Beyond Meat has only been a public company since 2019. The company's newfound efforts for research and development prove a level of dedication that could benefit investors over the course of a few years. In an even more optimistic light, the research could favor a plant-based diet so well that Beyond Meat manages to score funding in the way that beef agricultural companies have been for decades via initiatives like the Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Board from the USDA.