Head-To-Head Comparison: Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) vs. Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE)

Plug Power (NASDAQ:PLUG) and Franklin Electric (NASDAQ:FELE) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Plug Power and Franklin Electric”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Plug Power	$676.17 million	3.83	-$2.10 billion	($2.37)	-0.95
Franklin Electric	$2.11 billion	1.96	$180.31 million	$3.07	30.33

Franklin Electric has higher revenue and earnings than Plug Power. Plug Power is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Franklin Electric, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

43.5% of Plug Power shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.0% of Franklin Electric shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Plug Power shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Franklin Electric shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Plug Power and Franklin Electric’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Plug Power	-292.84%	-90.22%	-50.27%
Franklin Electric	6.71%	14.24%	9.46%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Plug Power and Franklin Electric, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Plug Power	6	6	4	1	2.00
Franklin Electric	0	2	0	0	2.00

Plug Power presently has a consensus target price of $2.50, suggesting a potential upside of 11.79%. Franklin Electric has a consensus target price of $112.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.29%. Given Franklin Electric’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Franklin Electric is more favorable than Plug Power.

Volatility and Risk

Plug Power has a beta of 2.28, meaning that its share price is 128% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Franklin Electric has a beta of 1.09, meaning that its share price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Franklin Electric beats Plug Power on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Plug Power

Plug Power Inc. develops hydrogen and fuel cell product solutions in North America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers GenDrive, a hydrogen-fueled proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell system that provides power to material handling electric vehicles; GenSure, a stationary fuel cell solution that offers modular PEM fuel cell power to support the backup and grid-support power requirements of the telecommunications, transportation, and utility sectors; ProGen, a fuel cell stack and engine technology used in mobility and stationary fuel cell systems, and as engines in electric delivery vans; GenFuel, a liquid hydrogen fueling delivery, generation, storage, and dispensing system; GenCare, an ongoing Internet of Things-based maintenance and on-site service program for GenDrive fuel cell systems, GenSure fuel cell systems, GenFuel hydrogen storage and dispensing products, and ProGen fuel cell engines; and GenKey, an integrated turn-key solution for transitioning to fuel cell power. It also provides electrolyzers, a hydrogen generator for clean hydrogen production; liquefaction systems that provides liquid hydrogen to customers; cryogenic equipment for the distribution of liquified hydrogen, oxygen, argon, nitrogen and other cryogenic gases, including trailers and mobile storage equipment; and liquid hydrogen, an alternative fuel to fossil-based energy. The company sells its products through a direct product sales force, original equipment manufacturers, and dealer networks. Plug Power Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Latham, New York.

About Franklin Electric

Franklin Electric Co., Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and distributes water and fuel pumping systems worldwide. The company operates through Water Systems, Fueling Systems, and Distribution segments. The Water Systems segment offers submersible motors, drives, pumps, electronic controls, water treatment systems, monitoring devices, and related parts and equipment. Its motors and pumps are used principally for pumping clean water and wastewater in various residential, agricultural, municipal, and industrial applications; and manufactures electronic drives and controls that are used in motors for controlling functionality, as well as provides protection from various hazards, such as electrical surges, over-heating, and dry wells or tanks. The Fueling Systems segment provides pumps, pipes, sumps, fittings, vapor recovery components, electronic controls, monitoring devices, and related parts and equipment primarily for use in fueling system applications. This segment serves other energy markets, such as power reliability systems, as well as includes electronic devices for online monitoring of the power utility, hydroelectric, and telecommunication and data center infrastructure. The Distribution segment sells to and provides presale support and specifications to the installing contractors. It sells products produced by the Water Systems segment. The company sells its products to wholesale and retail distributors, specialty distributors, original equipment manufacturers, industrial and petroleum equipment distributors, and oil and utility companies through its employee sales force and independent manufacturing representatives. Franklin Electric Co., Inc. was founded in 1944 and is headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana.