A surge in popularity for Beyond Meat Inc. has sent the stock soaring to record levels, with the price of one share now worth more than 60 of the plant-based burger patties.

The shares rose as much as 19 per cent to a high of US$201.88 on Tuesday. By comparison, Target Corp. advertises a two-pack of Beyond Burger patties for US$5.99 online. Beyond Meat is also starting to introduce a ground “beef” product in stores this week.

Beyond Meat has risen more than 600 per cent since its initial public offering last month, sparking caution among Wall Street analysts. The stock has no buy ratings and the average price target is just US$96, according to analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

“Beyond Meat’s valuation seems hard to swallow, as it is trading at 100 times premium to its traditional peers on Price/Revenue basis,” Nirgunan Tiruchelvam, head of consumers equity at research firm Tellimer Research, said in an email. That valuation is tough to justify even if revenue growth meets analyst projections, Tiruchelvam said.

--With assistance from Deena Shanker.