Plug Power (PLUG +5.58%) stock closed October with a 15.5% gain, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. That might seem modest until you consider that the hydrogen stock had soared more than 70% in just the first two weeks of the month. Although Plug Power stock pulled back quickly after that, it is still up 72% in three months.
With Plug Power set to release its third-quarter numbers on Nov. 10, is the stock poised for another big rally after earnings?
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Why Plug Power stock surged in October
October was a big month for Plug Power. Key announcements fueling the stock price rally included:
- It delivered the first of its 10 electrolyzers to Portugal's Galp's Sines refinery, one of Plug Power's largest projects.
- It secured a 2 gigawatt (GW) electrolyer deal with Allied Biofuels, expanding total contracted value with Allied Partners to 5 GW.
- It signed a partnership with Edgewood Renewables to build a renewable fuel facility in Nevada.
- It raised $370 million from the sale of warrants, with the potential to raise another $1.4 billion if all warrants are exercised by the institutional investor.
Above all, Plug Power announced a leadership change in October. Jose Luis Crespo, who joined the company in 2014, will replace Andy Marsh as the CEO from March 2026. Crespo has played a vital role in driving Plug Power's sales funnel to more than $8 billion through global expansion and relationship building with large customers like Amazon, Home Depot, and Walmart.
In an interview with CNBC in October, Crespo said Plug expects electrolyzers and material handling businesses to drive sales. Meanwhile, in-house hydrogen production should reduce Plug Power's costs as it cuts reliance on third parties for hydrogen purchases. Plug Power's green hydrogen plant in Georgia -- the largest such plant in the U.S. -- hit record production in August.
With so much going on at Plug Power and the company expecting to break even on gross margin on a run-rate basis by the fourth quarter of 2025 and become profitable by 2028, investors bid the stock higher in October.
NASDAQ: PLUG
Key Data Points
One analyst placing a massive price target on Plug Power further fueled the stock price.
Will Plug Power stock rise another 200% from here?
In early October, H.C. Wainwright analyst Amit Dayal more than doubled Plug Power stock's price target to $7 per share from $3 a share, implying nearly 70% upside from the stock's price back then. Among other things, Dayal is particularly bullish about green hydrogen's prospects amid rising demand and prices for electricity in the U.S.
With Plug Power stock retreating from its 52-week high of $4.58 per share, which it hit on Oct. 6, Dayal's price target now implies an almost 200% upside from the hydrogen stock's price as of this writing.
Can Plug Power stock rise another 200% over the next year or so? I wouldn't bet on that, but the hydrogen stock could rise again if the company reports better margins for its third quarter on Nov. 10 and sticks by its profitability goals. Keep an eye on Plug Power's longer-term goals, as they will decide where the stock will be in five years.
