2020 has been a booming year for hydrogen stocks. Shares of Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE) , Ballard Power Systems (NASDAQ: BLDP) , and FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL) have all gained more than 110% this year, while Plug Power (NASDAQ: PLUG) is up an incredible 648%. While that's good news for investors, the cold reality is that over most of their history, hydrogen stocks have been terrible investments. Since this year's surge is almost entirely due to investors willing to pay more for the companies -- not to any meaningful improvement in their results this year -- things could end badly if these companies don't deliver on the promise of hydrogen as a zero-carbon fuel.
One analyst thinks that hydrogen's prospects might be turning a corner. On the Nov. 2 edition of "The Wrap" on Motley Fool Live , host Jason Hall pointed out that NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) has recently given the green light to a clean hydrogen project powered by the falling costs of wind and solar. The company plans to produce green hydrogen at competitive prices that will make it a formidable challenge to hydrocarbons. Investors shouldn't be quick to dismiss this move.
For further details see:
Why Investors Shouldn't Ignore This High-Growth Utility Stock's Hydrogen Ambitions