Soaring share prices, battery revolution, sales record! BYD, Plug Power and Altech Advanced Materials shares!

Altech Advanced Materials: Opportunity for a rapid 50% price gain

Why is a rapid 50% price gain possible for the Altech Advanced Materials share? On the one hand, the Company, based in Saxony, is making great strides together with its Australian parent company and Fraunhofer in the development of revolutionary battery technology: the prototype is up and running, and there is the first declaration of intent for a significant order. On the other hand, the onerous capital increase has now been implemented and has provided Altech with EUR 800,000 in equity. At the end of September, before the capital increase, the share price was EUR 4.40 – currently it is only EUR 2.70. At that time, the prototype had not yet been tested. With a market capitalization of EUR 25 million, the German battery hopeful appears to be anything but highly valued.

It is undisputed that energy consumption, driven in part by the computing power required for artificial intelligence, will increase massively in the coming years. Due to a lack of baseload-capable and CO2-neutral alternatives, nuclear energy is once again in the spotlight. The radioactive waste is hardly discussed. Altech wants to offer an alternative.

Altech's sodium chloride solid-state battery CERENERGY®, developed together with Fraunhofer IKTS, is designed to finally make the storage – and thus baseload capability – of renewable energies affordable. Altech's battery technology uses common salt and nickel and is free of lithium, cobalt, graphite and copper. The battery is fire and explosion-safe and has a lifespan of more than 15 years. On October 1, the first CERENERGY® battery prototype, "BatteryPack ABS60", was put into operation. It was installed in the joint venture partner Fraunhofer IKTS test laboratory in Dresden and integrated into a specially developed battery test station. This setup enables continuous daily charge and discharge cycles to evaluate the battery's efficiency, stability and overall performance under real-life conditions and to provide data for potential customers.

Altech CEO Uwe Ahrens commented: "We are very pleased that the first prototype of the CERENERGY® 60kWh battery is now in operation and delivering very strong results. This confirms our confidence in the sodium chloride all-solid-state battery technology developed by the world-leading Fraunhofer Institute in Germany." Altech has already found a first potential customer for the mass production. The Schwarze Pumpe industrial park wants to purchase CERENERGY® battery packs with an energy storage capacity of 150 MWh. The LOI concluded in September has a volume in the triple-digit million-euro range. As already mentioned, Altech's market capitalization is around EUR 25 million, indicating that, even with joint venture partners, the market potential significantly exceeds its current valuation.

Plug Power: What comes after a 20% price gain?

Experts have been debating the potential of hydrogen for years. What is indisputable, however, is that hydrogen deserves a place in the energy mix of the future and is also being heavily promoted by politicians. Both factors speak in favor of investing in this area. However, long-standing industry favorites Nel and Plug Power have failed to develop profitable business models. Accordingly, the shares of both companies have been among the major disappointments and capital destroyers of recent years. Now, Plug Power has sent a sign of life with a 20% jump in share price within a few days.

There was no news from the Company that could explain the price explosion. Plug Power appears to be among the companies that could benefit from a potential victory for Kamala Harris in the upcoming US elections. The outcome is expected to be known in just a few days. In addition, there is speculation that hydrogen could play a significant role in the US in satisfying the energy hunger of the data centers of Microsoft, Google & Co. However, this is pure speculation so far. What is clear is that Plug Power will publish quarterly figures on November 12. The Company will have to deliver a decent quarter in order to achieve its annual forecasts, which have historically been challenging for Plug Power to achieve. Investors should remain cautious given this track record of missed projections.

BYD: Over 20% upside potential?

While Altech Advanced Materials is on the verge of commercializing its revolutionary battery technology, BYD has experienced explosive growth in recent years. Meanwhile, the Chinese electric carmaker is in a neck-and-neck race with Tesla for the industry's top spot – while German manufacturers unfortunately struggle with sales problems.

Last quarter, BYD increased its vehicle deliveries by 37%. Sales rose by 24% to around USD 28 billion. The gross margin improved from 19% to 21.9%. Net profit climbed by 21.2% to the equivalent of USD 1.63 billion.

Nomura was satisfied with BYD's performance and confirmed its "Buy" recommendation. Analysts expect BYD to gain further market share in China with its aggressive pricing policy. The new platform with DM-i 5.0 technology for hybrid vehicles should also contribute to this. Nomura's target price is HKD 375. BYD shares are currently trading just under HKD 300. The analysts see a price potential of over 20%.

It seems inevitable that BYD will be one of the major automotive manufacturers in the future. Even punitive tariffs like those in Europe are unlikely to change this trajectory. Altech Advanced Materials is approaching commercialization. The prototype is running, and the first LOI for a major order has been received. Thus, the conditions are good for the stock to at least return to the level before the capital increase, which could represent a price gain of around 50%. On the other hand, there is no compelling reason to buy shares of Plug Power at this time. The recent price spikes may benefit speculators rather than provide a solid investment opportunity.