What happened
The stocks of alternative energy companies are dropping again today. That includes hydrogen fuel businesses Plug Power (PLUG 1.26%) and Bloom Energy (BE 10.99%), as well as solar technology company First Solar (FSLR 2.12%). As of 11:20 a.m. ET, Plug shares were down 4.9%, while Bloom Energy and First Solar stocks were lower by 6.5% and 1.3%, respectively.
So what
Several dynamics have been at work for clean energy stocks over the last several months. Many stocks in the sector moved higher in anticipation of the passage of federal climate legislation that ultimately became the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). In the last three months, shares of Plug Power and Bloom Energy are up 35% and 27%, respectively. First Solar has soared more than 90% in that time.
But since the IRA was signed in mid-August, other factors have pushed the two hydrogen fuel cell stocks in the other direction. Both are down more than 20% since Aug. 16. First Solar, however, had continued to march higher. The macroeconomic environment, particularly with the Federal Reserve hiking interest rates by 75 basis points for the third straight time, likely explains why Plug Power and Bloom Energy have dropped.
Now what
First Solar is the only one of the trio that has positive earnings over the trailing-12-month period. Net sales in the second quarter soared nearly 70% from Q1 due to increased solar module sales. Management subsequently boosted its full-year sales forecast. The company did lower earnings guidance, but that was due to a legacy business write-down and foreign currency exchanges.
Investors feel better owning a growing business with positive earnings right now, versus more speculative companies like Plug Power and Bloom Energy. Those companies are also growing quickly, but the hydrogen industry isn't nearly as far along as solar power. As interest rates are being increased globally to tame inflation, investors are shying away from more speculative areas like hydrogen.
But Plug and Bloom continue to move forward. Today, for example, Plug announced it has commissioned a 1 megawatt hydrogen-generating electrolyzer at the world's first green hydrogen production offshore platform. Bloom Energy said this week that it was chosen by a North American food producer to help power its California food processing facilities to make it fully independent from the state's troubled power grid.
Globally, the European Commission -- the executive arm of the European Union -- just approved as much as 5.2 billion euros (about $5.1 billion) in public funding for hydrogen projects. So the hydrogen economy itself remains in growth mode. But slower global economic growth and higher interest rates are making investors seek out less risky assets, knocking shares of these alternative energy stocks down today.
