What happened
Blink Charging (BLNK +5.39%) stock tumbled 11.8% in 12:50 p.m. ET trading Monday after analysts at investment bank Cowen & Co. downgraded shares of the electric car-charging network builder.
Blink shares had spent most of the past week trading near or above Cowen's price target of $41 for the stock, putting the analyst in the logical position of having to either raise its price target (if it intended to continue recommending buying Blink) or cutting its rating on the stock (if it was really sure the stock was fully valued at that price level).
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
So when push came to shove, Cowen...blinked and downgraded the stock. In a note covered by StreetInsider.com this morning, Cowen pointed to the "torrid run" Blink stock has enjoyed "on renewed EV and EV charging euphoria," sending Blink stock up 51% since the beginning of October.
Although the analyst still thinks that "BLNK remains well-placed to benefit from industry tailwinds" and government subsidies for the charging industry, the analyst couldn't ignore the obvious fact that "plenty [of good news] appears priced in[to]" the stock already.
Now what
I'll say it is! At its current market capitalization north of $1.6 billion, Blink stock is richly valued for a stock that has never earned a profit in its history -- worse, a stock that no analysts see turning profitable at any time in the foreseeable future.
In the absence of profits, Blink sells for a staggering price that is 110 times trailing-12-month sales. A "110" valuation would seem rich if it referred to a price-to-earnings ratio. As a price-to-sales ratio, it's simply irrational.
