Beyond Meat upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler analyst Michael Lavery upgraded Beyond Meat (BYND) to Overweight from Neutral with a price target of $144, down from $178.

The stock in premarket trading is down 20%, or $29.61, to $120.89 following last night's Q3 results.

The decline makes the stock attractive as McDonald's (MCD) is working with the company as it rolls out plant-based patties, Lavery tells investors in a research note.

"We see opportunity as along-awaited McDonald's launch is set to start, and encouraging vaccine news may help foodservice broadly," says the analyst. Lavery points out that Piper's survey suggests plant-based foods appeal to younger consumers.