Plug Power Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:PLUG)

Key Points

• Plug Power experienced a significant increase in options trading, with 96,572 call options acquired, reflecting an 80% rise compared to its usual daily volume.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on Plug Power, with price targets ranging from $0.50 to $1.88 and ratings varying from "strong sell" to "buy."
• Institutional investors are increasing their stakes in Plug Power, with Vanguard Group and others substantially boosting their holdings in the last quarter.

Plug Power, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLUG - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 96,572 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 80% compared to the typical daily volume of 53,580 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PLUG shares. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Plug Power from $1.00 to $1.80 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Evercore ISI raised Plug Power to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Plug Power from $0.90 to $1.60 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Plug Power from $1.25 to $0.50 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Plug Power from $1.00 to $1.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $1.88.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Plug Power by 4.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,368,845 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $123,348,000 after buying an additional 3,930,342 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Plug Power by 14.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,071,904 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $35,872,000 after buying an additional 3,125,542 shares during the last quarter. Heights Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Plug Power during the first quarter worth approximately $31,174,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Plug Power by 59.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 16,980,865 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $25,301,000 after buying an additional 6,364,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Plug Power by 45.8% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,027,081 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $11,743,000 after buying an additional 2,521,348 shares during the last quarter. 43.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Plug Power Stock Performance

PLUG traded up $0.11 on Tuesday, hitting $1.68. The company had a trading volume of 69,696,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 81,967,125. The company's fifty day moving average price is $1.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.31. Plug Power has a 1-year low of $0.69 and a 1-year high of $3.32. 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 has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.73 and a beta of 2.09.

Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The electronics maker reported ($0.16) earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $173.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.97 million. Equities analysts predict that Plug Power will post -1.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Plug Power

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.

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