This Clean Energy Stock Has Better 1-Year Returns Than Tesla, Nio, Apple And Plug Power

FuelCell Energy Inc FCEL, a stock that was listed in the early 1990s and peaked at the $5,000 mark two decades ago only to come down to trade in single-digit levels, has still fetched handsome returns over the past one year.

The Danbury, Connecticut-based company's stock has in the past quarter seen a jump in revenue and a narrower loss, and while it is much smaller in stature and size with a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, the stock has fared better than bigger companies such as Tesla Inc TSLA, Apple Inc AAPL, Nio Inc NIO and peer Plug Power Inc PLUG.

FuelCell designs, manufactures, operates and services Direct Fuel Cell power plants. The company relies mostly on services for revenue and has in the past quarter reported a handsome jump in those numbers. But that's a one-off and the year-to-date numbers still fail to impress. 

The Financial Conundrum: The company reported third-quarter numbers earlier this week. Revenue jumped 43% to $26.8 million for the quarter ended July 31, lifted by a $7.2 million increase in service agreements and license revenues. Analysts were expecting $20.69 million. Loss per share narrowed to $0.04 from $0.07, beating the estimate of $0.05.

It reported a backlog of $1.3 billion during the quarter was down 2.25%, implying it is not securing any big contracts. 

Through July 31, FuelCell Energy sold about 44 million shares under the Open Market Sales Agreement, generating net proceeds of $369 million. The company ended the third quarter with cash and cash equivalents worth $494 million, compared with $192.1 million as of Oct. 31, 2020.

Shares jumped about 9% in the week after those announcements. 

FuelCell, which reports earnings on a calendar year basis, has improved its year-to-date revenue but now has a wider loss. Revenue rose a little over 1% to $19.9 million, compared with a year ago. Net loss widened to $76.87 million so far this year, from $70.2 million a year ago.

FuelCell shares had shot up in February this year on speculation that President Joe Biden’s administration might lift spending on hydrogen fuel cells.

See Also: FuelCell Energy Charges Up After Earnings: What's Next For The Stock?

Return Over 1-Year: Here’s how FuelCell Energy’s stock performance stacks up against major companies and peers in the clean energy industry in the last 12-months: 

FuelCell Energy shares are down 38.27% so far this year as of Friday’s close. The stock is however up from $2.59 a share in September last year to $6.55, a return of 152.9%. On a five-year basis, the stock is down 89.68%.

Tesla shares are up 4.07% so far this year. The stock is up from $449.39 a share last September to $759.49, a return of 69%. On a five-year basis, Tesla stock has returned 1,730.54% gains.

Nio shares are down 29.87% so far this year. The stock is up from $18.81 a share in September last year to $37.51, a return of 99.42%. On a five-year basis, the U.S.-listed Nio has returned 278.89% gains.

Plug Power shares are down 17.7% so far this year. The stock is up from $13.36 a share in September last year to $26.4, a return of 98.13%. On a five-year basis, Plug Power has returned 1523.9% gain.

Photo: Courtesy of Fuel Cell Energy