What happened
As the trading week wound down Friday, shares of hydrogen fuel cell company Plug Power (PLUG 2.71%) jumped up 4.3% through 1:40 p.m. EDT.
You can probably thank J.P. Morgan for that.
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
In a note this morning summing up its findings after recently meeting with Plug management, reports TheFly.com, J.P. Morgan analysts doubled down on their overweight rating on the stock.
Demand for the company's products remains strong, says J.P. Morgan, and the banker is downright "excited" over the chance that Plug will be able to "drive down the cost of electrolyzers" (which are used to split hydrogen atoms away from water molecules, so that the hydrogen can be used for fuel). This, in turn, could make using fuel cells to power automobiles more cost-competitive with gas- and battery-powered automobiles.
More objectively, Plug Power is "on track to meet" its targets for billings in both 2021 and 2022, said J.P. Morgan.
Now what
What are those targets, you ask? At last report, Plug was targeting billings -- which are generally below the company's revenue as reported under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) -- of $500 million this year, and $750 million in 2022.
Plug Power has not provided guidance for what it expects revenue (or earnings, for that matter) to look like. Analysts who follow the company, however, have Plug pegged for just under $500 million -- $492.5 million to be precise -- in revenue this year, followed by $748.5 million in 2022.
Analysts have little hope, however, that Plug will be profitable in either year. Indeed, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, Plug isn't expected to report its first profit before 2024.
