Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Plug Power, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLUG - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $1.31, but opened at $1.26. Plug Power shares last traded at $1.19, with a volume of 14,896,278 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Plug Power from $1.70 to $0.90 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Plug Power in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. B. Riley dropped their price target on Plug Power from $4.00 to $3.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Plug Power from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on Plug Power from $1.80 to $1.25 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Plug Power currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1.83.

Plug Power Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of -0.45 and a beta of 2.17. The business's 50 day moving average is $0.93 and its 200 day moving average is $1.60.

Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The electronics maker reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.20) by ($0.01). Plug Power had a negative return on equity of 82.21% and a negative net margin of 312.29%. The firm had revenue of $133.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $130.92 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Plug Power, Inc. will post -1.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Paul B. Middleton bought 350,000 shares of Plug Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $0.72 per share, for a total transaction of $252,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1,908,064 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,373,806.08. The trade was a 22.46% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.41% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Plug Power

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in Plug Power by 29.7% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 177,839 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 40,710 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Plug Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $146,465,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in Plug Power by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,685,413 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $5,720,000 after purchasing an additional 70,187 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Plug Power during the fourth quarter worth $320,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in shares of Plug Power by 387.7% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 969,327 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $2,065,000 after buying an additional 770,564 shares during the period. 43.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.