Beyond Meat’s stock has experienced a dramatic resurgence this week, climbing nearly 600 percent over three trading sessions as retail investors and meme stock traders pile into the struggling plant-based meat company.

The stock surged 77 percent in extended trading Wednesday to $6.43 per share, following a 146 percent  rally on Tuesday — the company’s best single-day performance on record. On Monday, shares jumped 127 percent. But the surge faltered by midday, with shares dropping to just more than $4, and trading was briefly halted for “downside volatility.”

This week’s trading frenzy is reminiscent of the pandemic-era meme stock phenomenon, when retail traders coordinated on forums like Reddit’s WallStreetBets to drive aggressive, high-risk trades. In June 2020, Gamestop was trading at around a dollar, but once meme traders — individual investors who use social media and online forums to coordinate buying and selling of speculative assets — collectively bet on the stock, it soared past $33.

Another stock hyped by meme traders, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., went from around $12 in October 2020 to a whopping $307 in April 2021, but by the beginning of 2024 it had plunged to $3.75.

More than 63 percent of Beyond Meat’s available shares were sold short, according to CNBC,  making it a prime target for the kind of coordinated buying activity that defined the meme stock craze of 2021. The craze even attracted former hedge fund manager Martin Shkreli, who served six years in prison after being convicted in federal court on two counts of securities fraud. 

“i shorted a tiny amount yesterday. now i’m shorting more. thank you, morons. please make it go higher. APES STRONG TOGETHER LMAO. $BYND,” he wrote on X.

Tuesday’s surge was further amplified by news that Beyond Meat will expand distribution at Walmart stores, with its “Beyond Burger 6-pack” and “Beyond Chicken Pieces” now available at 2,000 locations nationwide.

The rally marks a stunning reversal for Beyond Meat, which has been under pressure since its 2019 IPO when shares briefly soared past $230. Once valued at $14 billion, Beyond Meat now has a market capitalization of just $1.4 billion.

The stock has declined every year since its IPO: down 47 percent in 2021, 81 percent in 2022, 27 percent in 2023, and 57 percent in 2024. As of 2025, shares were down more than 3 percent year-to-date before this week’s surge.

Last November, shares rose to $6.58, but the price started a year-long skid. Shares were still around $2 at the beginning of October, but they plunged to 69 cents one week ago and dropped to a low of 52 cents on October 16. 

The drop came after the company announced it had finalized a debt restructuring deal. Under the agreement, Beyond Meat will receive $202 million in debt due in 2030 in exchange for debt maturing in 2027, while issuing up to 326 million shares to bondholders — a move that will significantly dilute existing shareholders.

The debt swap is designed to reduce some $800 million in outstanding obligations as the company battles declining sales and mounting losses.

Despite the stock’s meteoric rise, Beyond Meat’s business fundamentals remain weak, CNBC said. Second quarter sales fell 19.6 percent year-over-year to $75 million, driven by slumping volume at both retail locations and fast food chains. The company posted an operating loss of $34.9 million and has conducted multiple rounds of layoffs, including a 6 percent workforce reduction this year following two separate cuts in 2024.

On the subreddit WallStreetBets on reddit.com, reactions to the rally were mixed on Wednesday. In response to one user claiming they bought 10,000 shares at $7.50, a commenter wrote, “You’re already down 7k, impressive.”