Plug Power took a look at the books – this is how the third quarter went.
For Plug Power, the third financial quarter of 2023 once again ended with a loss. The EPS was -0.47 US dollars in the reporting period, after there had already been a loss of 0.300 US dollars in the hydrogen company’s books in the same period of the previous year. Analysts’ estimates for loss per share had previously been -$0.305.
At the same time, Plug Power had sales of 198.71 million US dollars, an improvement compared to the previous year, when revenues of 188.6 million US dollars were achieved. Nevertheless, the company was below analyst expectations: experts had previously assumed sales of $219.6 million.
Plug Power is pulling the plug on Europe’s hydrogen stocks
Bad news from the hydrogen industry in the USA also left a deep mark on the shares of European companies on Friday. Delivery problems in the production of fuel cells and high liquidity outflows at the US company Plug Power caused its share price to collapse. Plug Power shares temporarily fell 37.35 percent to $3.7150 in trading on the NASDAQ. The paper fell to its lowest level in more than three years.
In these deep waters, European providers in the industry also came under pressure. On the German market, thyssenkrupp Nucera and SFC Energy were hit. The thyssenkrupp subsidiary manufactures systems for producing so-called green hydrogen using electrolysis. SFC Energy produces, among other things, hydrogen fuel cells. The shares of thyssenkrupp Nucera, which only went public in July, fell by five and a half percent around midday. SFC Energy fell six percent.
The fact that Plug Power’s price losses were significantly higher is probably mainly due to the fact that the company, which is currently valued at $2.5 billion on the stock market, is burning a lot of money. In the third quarter, according to analyst Chris Dendrinos from RBC, it was almost $400 million. At the end of the quarter, Plug Power still had $1.3 billion in working capital, the industry expert wrote in a study before the weekend.
Management has therefore indicated several options to support liquidity, including a $1.5 billion loan from the US Department of Energy and a capital measure. “We think a transaction could happen this quarter,” predicted the expert, who estimates capital requirements for the next twelve months at at least $750 million.
The news from Plug Power also caused price losses on other European stock exchanges. In Oslo, Nel shares recently lost almost nine percent. The Norwegians offer the complete range from the production of hydrogen from electrical energy to its storage and distribution. In London, ITM Power shares temporarily lost almost five percent. The company specializes in so-called electrolysers and hydrogen for fuel cells.
The former hype surrounding green hydrogen is a thing of the past. While Plug Power shares cost over $40 two years ago, the price has since shrunk to a tenth. Thyssenkrupp Nucera went public in July at an issue price of 20 euros per share and lost 30 percent in the following four months. The shares of SFC Energy from near Munich have almost halved over the last two years. ITM Power cost over 700 pence at the beginning of 2021 – and is now available for 60 pence.
Editorial team finanzen.net / dpa-AFX
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Image sources: Plug Power Inc.