BYND Drops After Expanding Production to Europe

The shares of Beyond Meat Co (NASDAQ: BYND) are down 6.9% at $143.72 this afternoon after the meat-alternative brand announced expanded local production capabilities in Europe through its first co-manufacturing facility in the Netherlands. The facility will produce the company's signature plant-based burgers and sausage products, which are to be more efficiently distributed across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

On the charts, BYND has fully recovered from the mid-March lows near the $48 level. In fact, shares are now considerably higher than they were in early February, before the coronavirus pandemic. The stock's 20-day moving average has helped keep the shares in check, though it still has a long way to go before it reaches its 2019 all-time-high of $239.71 again. Nonetheless, BYND is rallying support with a 117% lead for the quarter. 

Despite the positive price action, analysts are mostly hesitant toward BYND, with 11 of the 15 in question carrying a tepid "hold" or worse recommendation, while the remaining four consider it a "strong buy." Meanwhile, the 12-month consensus target price of $95.95 is a whopping 33.86% discount to current levels. 

In the options pits, however, the appetite for calls is exceptionally high. In the last 50 days, 2.37 calls were bought for every put at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio sits higher than all readings from the past year, meaning calls are being picked up at a faster-than-usual clip of late.