Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE) Rating Lowered to Underperform at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Bloom Energy has been downgraded by Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" to an "underperform" rating, with a new target price set at $31.00, indicating a potential downside of nearly 60% from its current trading price.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts, including Robert W. Baird and Wells Fargo, have raised their price targets significantly, with Bloom Energy having a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.08.
• Insider trading activity includes significant share sales by executives, which may reflect concerns about the company's future performance; insiders have sold over $14 million in stock recently.

Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $31.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $24.00. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective would indicate a potential downside of 59.96% from the stock's current price.

BE has been the topic of several other reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Bloom Energy from $45.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Bloom Energy from $38.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Bloom Energy from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group increased their target price on Bloom Energy from $29.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Bloom Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $18.00 to $33.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bloom Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $33.08.

Bloom Energy Trading Down 10.3%

Shares of BE stock opened at $77.42 on Wednesday. Bloom Energy has a 1 year low of $9.02 and a 1 year high of $86.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 4.99 and a quick ratio of 3.21. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $48.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.21. The company has a market cap of $18.12 billion, a PE ratio of 1,935.98 and a beta of 3.28.

Bloom Energy (NYSE:BE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.08. Bloom Energy had a return on equity of 6.80% and a net margin of 1.45%.The business had revenue of $401.24 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $382.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.06) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Bloom Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts predict that Bloom Energy will post -0.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bloom Energy

In other Bloom Energy news, insider Satish Chitoori sold 20,000 shares of Bloom Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $900,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 234,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,552,185. This trade represents a 7.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kr Sridhar sold 60,000 shares of Bloom Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total value of $2,982,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,368,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $117,736,864.70. The trade was a 2.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 302,205 shares of company stock worth $14,919,283. Insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloom Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BE. Banque Transatlantique SA increased its stake in shares of Bloom Energy by 227.6% in the 1st quarter. Banque Transatlantique SA now owns 1,671 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Bloom Energy by 2,160.0% in the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,582 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,512 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Bloom Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bloom Energy by 674.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,867 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 1,626 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bloom Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.04% of the company's stock.

About Bloom Energy

Bloom Energy Corporation designs, manufactures, sells, and installs solid-oxide fuel cell systems for on-site power generation in the United States and internationally. The company offers Bloom Energy Server, a solid oxide technology that converts fuel, such as natural gas, biogas, hydrogen, or a blend of these fuels into electricity through an electrochemical process without combustion.

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