Plug Power’s $163.5M Quarter Beats Forecasts as Electrolyzer Revenues Quadruple and Fleet Refreshes Take Shape

Plug Power reports $163.5M revenue, beats estimates; electrolyzer sales quadruple, Amazon renewal cycle ahead; margins improve but cash burn continues.

Plug Power smashed Wall Street’s first-quarter revenue estimates on Wednesday, reporting $163.5 million — a 22% year-over-year gain that comfortably beat the roughly $140 million consensus. But beyond the headline number, two structural drivers are converging: a surge in electrolyzer sales and the early stages of a multi-year fleet renewal cycle with Amazon that could involve tens of thousands of fuel cell units.

The electrolyzer segment alone generated $40.8 million, more than quadrupling the $9.2 million recorded a year earlier. The ramp reflects progress on a 25-megawatt installation in Spain with Iberdrola and a 100-megawatt project in Portugal with GALP. Management pegs the total order pipeline at around $8 billion.

Meanwhile, Plug Power’s core material-handling business, which supplies fuel cells for forklifts and warehouse equipment, grew about 15% from last year. Crucially, the fuel margin improved by more than 50 percentage points, driven by better network efficiency and a third-party gas supply agreement. Service costs per unit fell over 30%, further supporting margin recovery. The company is also winning over energy-intensive customers with a fresh pitch: a site running 200 forklifts can cut local grid demand by roughly two megawatts, a compelling argument for operators facing capacity constraints.

The fleet renewal cycle stems from Plug Power’s first Amazon installation in 2016. Those systems are now aging, and management expects to replace between ten and twelve Amazon sites annually starting in late 2026, amounting to roughly 20,000 units over several years. Talks with Walmart, BMW, Stellantis and cable producer Southwire suggest additional renewal opportunities.

The improvement in profitability is showing up on the bottom line. Plug Power reported an adjusted loss per share of $0.08, narrowing from a loss of $0.17 a year ago. The company reiterated its goal of achieving a positive operating result — measured as EBITDAS — in the fourth quarter of 2026.

However, the path to that milestone requires careful financial navigation. Plug Power burned about $150 million in operating cash during the quarter, and its cumulative deficit stands at $8.2 billion. At the end of March, it held $802 million in cash. The company is counting on $142 million from an asset monetization deal expected by June, along with proceeds from selling tax credits. The reintroduction of the US investment tax credit earlier in 2026 is improving project economics for customers.

The market initially cheered the results. Plug Power shares surged more than 15% intraday on Wednesday and closed about 11% higher. The stock is up roughly 79% year to date and trades about 70% above its 200-day moving average. On Thursday, however, profit-taking pushed the share price down about 5% to €3.21. Over the past twelve months, the stock has still gained 364%.

For the full year, management forecasts revenue growth of 13% to 15%. But the timeline to positive EBITDAS hinges on the fleet renewal schedule ramping up as planned and on the timely completion of asset sales and tax credit monetizations. Delays in any of these pieces could strain Plug Power’s financing for the remainder of 2026, turning a promising quarter into a precarious balancing act.