Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Plug Power, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLUG) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $2.65, but opened at $2.93. Plug Power shares last traded at $2.6450, with a volume of 43,463,062 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Plug Power from $1.00 to $1.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Plug Power in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Plug Power from $0.90 to $1.60 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Plug Power from $1.10 to $1.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their price target on Plug Power from $3.00 to $7.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.54.

Plug Power Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.11 and a beta of 2.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $2.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.74.

Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The electronics maker reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by ($0.01). Plug Power had a negative return on equity of 90.22% and a negative net margin of 292.84%.The firm had revenue of $173.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $157.97 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Plug Power, Inc. will post -1.21 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plug Power

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Plug Power by 138.4% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 202,387 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 117,492 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in Plug Power in the 1st quarter valued at about $153,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Plug Power by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,470,629 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $3,335,000 after acquiring an additional 18,260 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Plug Power by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 1,447,796 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $1,955,000 after acquiring an additional 49,325 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Plug Power by 13.9% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 269,156 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 32,769 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 43.48% of the company’s stock.

Plug Power Company Profile

Plug Power Inc develops hydrogen and fuel cell product solutions in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers GenDrive, a hydrogen-fueled proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell system that provides power to material handling electric vehicles; GenSure, a stationary fuel cell solution that offers modular PEM fuel cell power to support the backup and grid-support power requirements of the telecommunications, transportation, and utility sectors; ProGen, a fuel cell stack and engine technology used in mobility and stationary fuel cell systems, and as engines in electric delivery vans; GenFuel, a liquid hydrogen fueling delivery, generation, storage, and dispensing system; GenCare, an ongoing Internet of Things-based maintenance and on-site service program for GenDrive fuel cell systems, GenSure fuel cell systems, GenFuel hydrogen storage and dispensing products, and ProGen fuel cell engines; and GenKey, an integrated turn-key solution for transitioning to fuel cell power.