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The Moat Index

Plug Power Inc.

PLUG · Industrials · FY2025 filings · No moat ·

Doesn't clear the bar

10/ 100
No moat

The four filters

Pricing power0

Median gross margin -28.0% over 9y, variable.

Returns on capital0

Median ROIC -51.5%, above the 9% hurdle in 0% of years.

Balance-sheet safety28

Net debt/EBITDA n/ax, interest coverage -23x.

Capital discipline24

Owner earnings trend unclear, share count growing (dilution).

Margin of safety

Above valueOn sale
No price data
Owner earnings (normalized)
—
Est. intrinsic value / share
—
Recent price
$2.15
Discount to value
No price data

Conservative model: 9% discount rate, 0% assumed growth (capped at 4%), maintenance capex ≈ min(capex, D&A).

18 years of fundamentals

The business, in plain English

Plug Power Inc. booked $709.9M of revenue in FY2025 in the Industrials sector and kept −34.1% of it as gross profit — a thin-margin business by that measure. After every other cost, −229.8% of each revenue dollar reached the bottom line.

Across the filed record, revenue grew from $12.3M (FY2009) to $709.9M (FY2025) — about 28.9% a year compounded over 16 years.

It earned −190.2% on invested capital in FY2025, with a median of −90.2% across 16 filed years. The Returns on Capital filter above scores it 0/100.

The balance sheet carried $200000 of total debt in FY2024. Balance-Sheet Safety scores it 28/100.

The share count rose 1437.2% between FY2012 and FY2022 — existing owners have been diluted over the record. Capital Discipline scores it 24/100.

Put together: Balance-Sheet Safety is the strongest of the four filters (28/100) and Pricing Power the weakest (0/100), which is how PLUG lands at 10/100 — a None moat.

This breakdown is generated from the filed numbers and sub-scores above — no outside narrative, no estimates. Where a filing doesn’t disclose an input, the sentence that would need it is omitted instead of guessed.

FY2008–FY2025 · 18 fiscal years, normalized from PLUG’s SEC filings

RevenueSales, as filed$709.9M FY2025
$0$500M2008201420202025
Gross marginRevenue kept after cost of goods−34.1% FY2025
−100%0%2008201420202025
Return on invested capitalOperating profit on the capital employed−190.2% FY2025
−400%−200%0%2008201420202025
Owner earningsCash an owner could take out−$1.7B FY2025
−$2B−$1B$02008201420202025

Gaps in a line mean that item isn’t in PLUG’s filings for that year — the series is never interpolated or estimated. The Table view lists every filed value, including operating and net margins, total debt, and share count.

Moat Score history

3 logged readings since Jul 17, 2026 · append-only, never rewritten

Moat Score over timeLast scored reading of each day, on the 0–100 scale10.3 / 100
0406080100WideNarrowShallowNo moatJul 17, 2026

Score history begins Jul 17, 2026 — the record builds from here and can’t be backfilled.

Tier changesSame-methodology crossings of the Wide / Narrow / Shallow bars

None yet — PLUG has read No moat for every logged capture since Jul 17, 2026.

Scores are logged append-only and never overwritten — this record can’t be backfilled, which is exactly why it’s worth keeping.

Industrials context

#305 of 309 scored Industrials companies, ranked by Moat Score.

Nearest peers by Moat Score

  1. #303ORN ORION GROUP HOLDINGS, INC.11.4No moat
  2. #304HYFM HYDROFARM HOLDINGS GROUP, INC.11.0No moat
  3. #306AQMS AQUA METALS, INC.10.3No moat
  4. #307UP WHEELS UP EXPERIENCE INC.10.3No moat

Compare PLUG with its nearest peers →All Industrials companies on the Index →

Common questions about PLUG

Does Plug Power Inc. have an economic moat?
Based on its FY2025 SEC filings, the Moat Index scores Plug Power Inc. (PLUG) 10.3 out of 100 — below the Shallow-moat bar, so no moat. The four filters behind that score (each 0–100): pricing power 0, returns on capital 0, balance-sheet safety 28, capital discipline 24.
How has PLUG's Moat Score changed over time?
The record logs 3 readings since Jul 17, 2026; the latest reads 10.3 out of 100 (no moat). No tier changes on record yet. The history is append-only — readings are only ever added, never rewritten.
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Scored from primary SEC filings via the public methodology. Educational only — not a recommendation to buy or sell PLUG. See the disclaimer.

Plug Power Inc. (PLUG) Moat Score — The Moat Index · Buy Like Buffett