Plug Power vs. FuelCell Energy: Which Fuel Cell Stock has Greater Upside?
The Case for Plug Power
Plug Power has been subject to a high cash burn rate and negative gross margins over the past several quarters. Lower revenues from the sales of hydrogen equipment and related infrastructure have been weighing on its performance. The company has been witnessing lower sales of GenDrive units, GenSure stationary backup power units, cryogenic storage equipment and liquefiers.Despite this, PLUG has been focusing on scaling up its business and investing in hydrogen plants, given the long-term growth potential of the green hydrogen energy market. Going by some estimates, the green hydrogen energy market is expected to grow to $30 billion by 2030.PLUG intends to capitalize on the opportunity with increased green hydrogen production at its new plant in Georgia, as well as a new joint venture with Olin Corporation OLN in Louisiana. Also, in January 2025, it secured a loan guarantee worth $1.66 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to support the construction of six green hydrogen production facilities. This marks a significant step in the expansion of its hydrogen production capabilities.Plug Power's strong expertise in providing and installing electrolyzers is underlined by its deployment of substantial proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer systems to date. This is underlined by its successful PEM electrolyzer deployment at the largest U.S. electrolytic liquid hydrogen production plant in Georgia. PLUG's cost management and supply-chain optimization efforts have also supported it in slowing down its cash burn rate, which declined nearly 50% year over year in first-quarter 2025. In the same quarter, it launched Project Quantum Leap with a target to generate more than $200 million in annualized savings.As part of the project, the company stands to benefit from sales growth, pricing actions, inventory and capex management, and increased leverage of its hydrogen production platform. It expects the project to boost its cash flow and reduce the cash burn rate in the quarters ahead.
The Case for FuelCell Energy
FCEL continues to receive orders from its customers who need a 24/7 clean energy supply to efficiently run their operations. Earlier this year, the company received a contract to build a 7.4 MW fuel cell power plant in Hartford, CT. The project is expected to add more than $160 million of future revenues to FuelCell Energy's generation backlog. The backlog at the end of second-quarter fiscal 2025 (ended April 2025) was $1.26 billion, reflecting year-over-year growth of 18.7%.The company's strategic partnership with Diversied Energy and TESIAC Corp. is also expected to accelerate its entry into the data center market and expand its penetration in deployed microgrid applications. FuelCell Energy is also working on a global restructuring of its operations in the United States, Canada and Germany. This initiative will lower operating costs, realign resources toward advancing the company's core carbonate technologies and protect its competitive position in the clean energy market.However, FCEL has been subject to negative gross margins over the past few quarters. Its gross margin was a negative 26% in the first six months of fiscal 2025. Rising operating costs and expenses have been weighing on its margins and profitability. For instance, in the first half of fiscal 2025, its cost of revenues increased 23% from the year-ago period.FuelCell Energy's high debt level remains another concern. Its long-term debt balance at the end of second-quarter fiscal 2025 remained high at $124.1 million. Considering its high debt level, the company's cash and cash equivalents (unrestricted) of $116.1 million do not look impressive.
How Does the Zacks Consensus Estimate Compare for PLUG & FCEL?
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for PLUG's 2025 sales is $709.3 million, implying year-over-year growth of 12.8%. The consensus estimate for its bottom line is pegged at a loss of 59 cents per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FCEL's fiscal 2025 (ending October 2025) sales is approximately $144.6 million, indicating growth of 28.9% year over year. Estimates for its bottom line are pegged at a loss of $6.22 per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Price Performance and Valuation of PLUG & FCEL
In the past three months, Plug Power's shares have surged 91.8%, while FuelCell Energy stock has gained 37.4%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Plug Power is trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of a negative 4.13X. In comparison, FuelCell Energy's forward earnings multiple currently sits at a negative 1.06X.
Conclusion
Plug Power and FuelCell Energy have a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) each, which makes choosing one stock a difficult task. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.FuelCell Energy's strength in the fuel cell market and solid backlog level have been diluted by rising costs and expenses, which have been denting its profitability. While PLUG's negative gross margins and cash outflows remain a near-term concern, its strong foothold in the green hydrogen market and growth investments are likely to be beneficial in the long run.Additionally, PLUG's Quantum LEAP initiative and strong sales estimates instill investor confidence. Given these factors, PLUG seems a better choice for investors than FCEL currently.
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