The fake-meat industry may be lacking teeth of late, but investors rewarded Beyond Meat Inc.'s stock on Thursday, promptly propelling it 14% in extended trading on better-than-expected quarterly results.

$Beyond Meat(BYND.US)$ pleasantly surprised investors with fourth-quarter sales and earnings that topped analysts' forecasts and offered a pause to the ongoing storyline that sales of plant-based meat products have cooled since enjoying a surge in popularity during 2020.

Our fourth-quarter results clearly demonstrate delivery against our strategy and plan, including solid sequential progress on margin recovery and operating expense reduction, and continued inventory drawdown, Beyond Chief Executive Ethan Brown said in a statement announcing the numbers.

Beyond reported a fiscal fourth-quarter net loss of $66.9 million, or $1.05 a share, compared with a net loss of $80.4 million, or $1.27 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted earnings were $1.05 a share.

Revenue fell 21% to $79.9 million, from $100.7 million a year ago.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average a net loss of $1.18 a share on revenue of $75.8 million.

Shares of Beyond have crumbled 65% over the past year but have rallied of late, while the broader S&P 500 index has dipped 6% over the past 12 months. Beyond shares were flat in Thursday's regular session, closing at $17.14 a share.

Beyond's surprise results were a counter-narrative for an industry jolted by slackening sales and mounting layoffs at market leaders Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods Inc.