What Happened?
Shares of fuel cell technology Plug Power (NASDAQ: PLUG) fell 7.3% in the morning session after an analyst at TD Cowen downgraded the stock to Hold from Buy and lowered the price target to $2 from $4.
The downgrade came amid a challenging outlook for the broader hydrogen industry. A report from Wood Mackenzie referred to 2026 as a “year of reckoning for the hydrogen sector,” which would be marked by a “fundamental reassessment of what drives project economies.” This sentiment suggested that the optimism seen in previous years was facing a reality check, adding to the pressure on companies like Plug Power.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Plug Power’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 89 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 7 days ago when the stock gained 7.3% on the news that an analyst at Clear Street upgraded the fuel-cell company's stock to Buy from Hold. The analyst, Tim Moore, noted that the company appeared to be on a possible path toward profitability. This view was supported by Plug Power's $200 million cost-savings initiative and higher pricing for its products. These developments could lead to better financial performance. Despite the upgrade, the analyst trimmed the price target on the shares to $3 from $3.50.
Plug Power is down 3.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $2.16 per share, it is trading 47.8% below its 52-week high of $4.13 from October 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Plug Power’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $39.93.
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