FuelCell Energy shares soared more than 23% in Thursday trading, continuing a sharp rebound from earlier-week losses, as investors increasingly focused on fuel-cell companies as key suppliers of power for artificial intelligence data centers. The stock was last quoted at $24.98, up approximately 23.5%, after reaching an intraday high of $25.27 on heavy volume of around 13.1 million shares.
Behind-the-Meter Power Gains Traction
The rally reflects a broader market shift from a general clean-energy bid to a more targeted bet on power shortages tied to AI infrastructure. Behind-the-meter electricity—power generated on-site rather than drawn solely from the utility grid—has emerged as a fresh investment theme, with fuel-cell firms positioned as potential beneficiaries.
FuelCell's move followed a 16.47% gain on Wednesday to $20.22, when the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.54%. That breakout ended a three-day losing streak and came on unusually heavy volume, according to MarketWatch.
Peer Stocks Rally on AI Infrastructure Deal
The positive sentiment extended to peers. Bloom Energy rose about 11.1%, Plug Power gained 14.5%, and Nebius Group climbed 16.3%, while the Nasdaq-heavy QQQ fund slipped about 0.5%. The catalyst was a May 20 announcement that Bloom Energy and Nebius had agreed to deploy Bloom fuel cells for Nebius's AI infrastructure build-out, with the first project expected to provide 328 megawatts of installed capacity this year. “Power remains a key constraint,” Nebius executive Andrey Korolenko said in a statement.
Board Appointment and Earnings Date Set
FuelCell's own news centered on governance and timing. The Danbury, Connecticut-based company announced that cybersecurity and industrial-technology veteran John Livingston joined its board effective May 19. It also said it would report fiscal second-quarter results before the market opens on June 8, followed by a conference call at 10 a.m. Eastern.
A regulatory filing revealed that FuelCell expanded its board to nine directors and appointed Livingston to its Audit, Finance and Risk Committee and its Compensation and Leadership Development Committee. The filing also noted there were no reportable related-party transactions involving Livingston.
Chief Executive Jason Few said Livingston's experience aligns with “AI-driven demand and digital infrastructure increasingly converging.” Livingston commented that FuelCell is “in the right place at the right time” for behind-the-meter power.
Expansion Plans and Financial Realities
That narrative is what traders are buying. In March, FuelCell announced it was introducing standardized 12.5-megawatt power blocks for data centers and planned to expand capacity at its Torrington, Connecticut, plant over time from about 100 MW to 350 MW. “What’s changed is urgency,” Few said then; sales chief Eric Strayer added that customers want “fast, phased deployment.”
Fuel cells generate electricity through an electrochemical process rather than combustion, offering baseload power—steady supply that can run day and night—a critical pitch for data centers that cannot tolerate interruptions.
However, the rally still faces hard financial math. FuelCell reported first-quarter revenue of $30.5 million, up 61% from a year earlier, but also posted a net loss of $26.1 million and said its backlog fell 10.8% to $1.17 billion. The company has warned that bid awards may not become contracts, contracts may not become revenue, and additional financing may be required.
That puts June 8 in focus. FuelCell's next update will show whether the AI-power story is moving from proposals and product blocks toward signed revenue, or whether Thursday's sharp move is mostly the market paying up for a theme.
