Fuel-cell stocks tumble 13% as AI power trade unwinds in broad selloff

Bloom Energy shares fell 13% to $188 on Friday, leading a broad selloff across fuel-cell stocks as investors took profits from the sector's parabolic AI-powered rally. FuelCell Energy dropped 9% to $21.37, while Plug Power slipped 4% to $2.10, with the Global X Hydrogen ETF falling 5% to $42 to confirm the pressure was sector-wide rather than company-specific.

"There isn't a clean catalyst behind today's move — it looks like high-beta profit-taking on a broad risk-off session, with a crowded AI-power trade unwinding after powerful rallies," according to the 247wallst.com report on the selloff. The short-seller report from early July that questioned Bloom Energy's supply-chain and production-capacity claims has given bears a ready-made narrative when the market turns defensive, though no new negative news hit the wire Friday.

Bloom Energy remains up 119% year to date even after the drop, while FuelCell Energy has gained 192% and Plug Power just 7%. Bloom's Q1 2026 revenue hit $751.1 million, up 130.4% year over year, with management raising full-year guidance to a range of $3.4 billion to $3.8 billion. The bull case rests on the company's on-site power deals for AI data centers, including a warrant partnership with Oracle and a $1.7 billion commitment from IDF and Oaktree for a Nebius AI infrastructure project. FuelCell Energy reported mixed Q2 results with revenue of $35.6 million, down 5% year over year, and a $42.6 million impairment tied to its Groton project, offset by a 4-gigawatt commercial pipeline with 90% tied to data center proposals. Plug Power posted Q1 revenue of $163.5 million, up 22.3% year over year, and is targeting positive EBITDAS in the fourth quarter, with roughly $275 million in expected proceeds from hydrogen project asset monetization.

The selloff highlights the concentration risk embedded in the AI data center power trade. Bloom Energy trades at 100 times forward earnings with a market capitalization of $61.8 billion, a valuation that already prices in significant growth from its Oracle-linked deals. Any slowdown in AI data center adoption or a shift in hyperscaler power procurement strategies could trigger further unwinding. Investors will watch whether Bloom Energy holds the $185 level into next week and whether forward earnings updates from all three companies in the coming weeks reset the narrative in either direction.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.