FCEL Q3 Loss Wider Than Expected on Fit Energy Charges

FuelCell Energy FCEL reported a fiscal third-quarter 2026 adjusted loss of 67 cents per share, narrowing 29.5% from the year-ago adjusted loss of 95 cents. Still, the loss was wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35 cents, resulting in a negative surprise of 91.4%. Revenues fell 29.4% year over year to $33 million and missed the $39 million consensus by 15.65%.

Lower Korean module deliveries and weaker generation output pressured sales, while $17 million of Fit Energy Phase 0 charges deepened the gross loss. Committed backlog rose 4.1% to $1.3 billion, while awarded capacity backlog totaled $2.4 billion.

FCEL Revenue Mix Declines Across Businesses

Product revenues fell to $18 million from $26 million a year earlier, reflecting fewer module deliveries to South Korea as the Gyeonggi Green Energy repowering program neared completion. Service revenues declined to $2.4 million from $3.1 million.

Generation revenues dropped to $8.8 million from $12.4 million, principally due to lower output from the generation portfolio, including the 7.4-MW Groton project, which was offline for the quarter. Advanced Technologies revenues declined to $3.8 million from $5.3 million.

FuelCell Margins Absorb Fit Energy Charges

Gross loss widened to $24.5 million from $5.1 million. The quarter included $17 million of charges related to the initial phase of a new data center equipment agreement with Fit Energy USA LP, a customer that contracted with FuelCell Energy for up to 380 MW of fuel cell systems. The charges reflected inventory write-downs and losses on firm purchase commitments because FuelCell’s current manufacturing costs exceeded the pricing set for the initial 30-MW order.

Operating expenses fell to $22.2 million from $90.2 million as the prior-year period included sizable impairment and restructuring charges. Loss from operations narrowed to $46.7 million from $95.4 million, although adjusted EBITDA worsened to negative $36.7 million from negative $16.4 million.

FCEL Builds Data Center Backlog

FuelCell Energy’s agreement with Fit Energy USA LP covers up to 380 MW of fuel cell systems intended to provide baseload electricity for data center applications. The first 30-MW phase is a committed order, with deliveries expected to begin in the fiscal fourth quarter. Fit Energy can separately elect to proceed with another 350 MW across three additional phases.

After quarter-end, FCEL also signed a 75-MW capacity reservation for a planned Texas data center project. Fiscal 2026 proposals reached about 10 GW, with data centers representing roughly 97% of the third-quarter pipeline.

Peer activity underscores the intensity of the opportunity. Bloom Energy BE reported $1.1 billion in second-quarter revenues and said all major U.S. hyperscalers plus more than a dozen neoclouds, AI labs and colocation operators had validated its power solutions. Plug Power PLUG said it had tested a 3-MW backup system with Microsoft and is evaluating data center solutions combining electrolyzers and fuel cells.

FuelCell Ramps Torrington for Profitability

FuelCell operated at an annualized production rate of about 37.1 MW and is targeting 100 MW in October 2026. The broader Torrington expansion targets 500 MW of annualized capacity by June 2028 at an expected cost of $200 million to $275 million, with management describing the project as fully funded.

FCEL targets positive adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2027, dependent on backlog conversion, customer delivery schedules and manufacturing cost reductions. The peer benchmarks are further along: Bloom Energy posted a 34.3% non-GAAP gross margin and $253 million of adjusted EBITDA in Q2, while Plug Power reached roughly breakeven gross margin and continues to target positive EBITDA in the fourth quarter of 2026.

FCEL Liquidity Supports Capacity Expansion

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash totaled $737.3 million at July 31, 2026, including $658.1 million of unrestricted cash. During the quarter, FuelCell raised about $245.5 million in net proceeds from an underwritten stock offering and another $52.9 million through its open-market sale agreement.

The funding approach differs across the group. Bloom Energy expanded its Brookfield financing framework to $25 billion to support power projects, while Plug Power is pursuing more than $275 million through asset monetization and non-dilutive financing and had received $47 million from its initial program by its August earnings call. FCEL's balance sheet, meanwhile, was strengthened through equity issuance as it funds manufacturing expansion.

FuelCell Advances Global Technology Projects

FuelCell completed the 42-module Gyeonggi Green Energy repowering program in South Korea during the quarter. It also delivered and installed the first two carbonate fuel cell carbon-capture modules at ExxonMobil's Rotterdam complex, moving the jointly developed technology into its first industrial-scale demonstration.

Management said the Rotterdam system is designed to capture more than 90% of carbon while producing power, thermal energy and hydrogen. The Rank #3 (Hold) company also signed an MOU with Siemens aimed at supporting faster, lower-cost deployment of commercial projects above 100 MW through integrated electrical balance-of-plant systems.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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