Is This the Last Christmas for These 3 Stocks?

GPRO 0.00% LCID +1.87% MCD -0.19% AAPL +0.47% BYND -3.75%

Quick Read

• Beyond Meat (BYND) lost $111M in Q3 2025 as revenue fell 13% to $70M amid a 20% drop in U.S. plant-based meat sales.

• GoPro (GPRO) was once king of the action-cam market but cheaper smartphones replicated its cameras capabilities, making them irrelevant.

• Lucid Motors (LCID) loses over $250K per car with Q3 net losses of $1.03B despite 68% revenue growth to $336M.

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A strong brand can signal quality and consistency to consumers in seconds -- for example, Nike's (NYSE:NKE) swoosh for reliability or Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) apple for sleek innovation. It builds loyalty and drives sales without endless explanations.

But branding has limits. It can't fix deeper problems like shifting tastes or outdated offerings. Even without scandals, irrelevance erodes value fast. Shoppers move on, leaving companies scrambling. Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND), GoPro (NASDAQ:GPRO), and Lucid Motors (NASDAQ:LCID) seem trapped in this negative feedback loop: they are all once-hot names now facing fading demand and brutal finances. The market has slashed their stocks, so let's see if this holiday marks their end.

Beyond Meat (BYND)

Beyond Meat burst onto the scene in 2019 with a promise to upend the $1 trillion meat industry. Its Beyond Burger mimicked beef's sizzle and taste using peas and beets, drawing A-list backers like Bill Gates and Leonardo DiCaprio. The stock soared 800% after its IPO, fueled by vegan trends and fast-food tie-ups like McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) McPlant. Investors bet on a world ditching animal protein for climate reasons, projecting endless growth in a nascent $8 billion plant-based market.

However, reality hit hard. By 2022, sales peaked then plunged as inflation bit and consumers balked at premium prices -- $6 for a burger patty when ground beef cost half. Health skeptics questioned ultra-processed ingredients, while rivals like Impossible Foods undercut with cheaper options. Demand for faux meat cratered: U.S. plant-based meat sales fell 19% in 2023, according to industry data. Beyond Meat's Q3 2025 revenue dropped 13% to $70 million, with a $111 million loss. Gross margins improved slightly to 15% via cost cuts, but net debt lingers at $215 million after a dilutive bond swap.

CEO Ethan Brown touts partnerships like Hard Rock Cafe burgers, yet category weakness persists -- recession fears and meat's rebound keep shelves dusty with packages many times relegated to the discount bin.

Will Beyond Meat survive to Christmas 2026? Liquidity should hold on into 2027, buying time for a pivot to snacks or international sales. But with analyst consensus at "Sell" and shares at $0.98, another 50% drop looms if Beyond's Q4 guidance of $60 million to $65 million in revenue misses. The Food Institute forecasts it will go bankrupt in 2027, so it may eke out one more Christmas..

GoPro (GPRO)

GoPro redefined adventure footage in the 2010s, turning shaky helmet clips into viral gold. Founded in 2002, GoPro went public in 2014 at a $3 billion valuation, riding the YouTube wave. Cameras like the Hero series captured extreme sports, selling millions to thrill-seekers and pros. Subscriptions for cloud editing added sticky revenue, pushing 2020 sales to $1 billion amid drone and 360-degree hype.

The fall started with smartphone encroachment -- iPhones now shoot 4K stabilized video for free. Competition from DJI drones and Insta360 eroded the moat, while tariffs on Chinese parts hiked costs 10% to 15%. Discretionary spending tanked during the period of high inflation, hitting gadget buyers.

GoPro's Q3 revenue fell 37% to $163 million, with GAAP losses more than doubling from last year. Subscriber additions slowed, and gross margins continued to erode, coming in at 35.2%. CEO Nicholas Woodman points to Emmy-winning 360 tech and GP3 chip launches for 2026, but the third quarter showed flat demand.

Can GoPro hang on through next Christmas? Analysts peg a $0.75 per share target with shares at $1.63. Positive cash flow emerged in Q3, and price hikes helped offset tariff. Diversifying to software or rentals might work, but without a hit product, it's fading fast. Survival? It seems likely, though the end may be in sight. It could otherwise make for a great buyout target.

Lucid Motors (LCID)

Lucid Motors promised Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA)-level luxury in 2021, debuting the Air sedan with a 500-mile range on a single charge. Backed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign Public Investment Fund (PIF), which has a $24 billion stake in the automaker, it went public via a SPAC with an $11 billion valuation, drawing praise from Elon Musk for its battery tech. The Gravity SUV followed, with deliveries beginning earlier this year.

Investors eyed a $100 billion total addressable market in premium EVs, with production ramps hitting 20,000 units by 2023 and upwards of 251,000 by 2026. Those heady days are a distant memory: it produced a little over 8,400 vehicles two years ago and 9,000 last year. It will break 10,000 for the first time this year.

Yet supply snags delayed Gravity's introduction, EV demand tumbled, and price wars and cheaper competition squeezed margins. Although Q3 revenue rose 68% to $336 million on 4,078 deliveries, net losses were $1.03 billion, meaning Lucid loses over $250,000 per car. Cash burn is nearing $1 billion quarterly, so even its $5.5 billion in liquidity won't last long.

Does Lucid see Christmas 2026? PIF's wallet will keep bankruptcy off the table, but at some point even it will get tired of lighting its money on fire. It wouldn't be surprising -- and would likely be best for any investors still left -- if the sovereign wealth fund just took over the entire operation.

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