StocksInsight

BE Stock vs the S&P 500: Returns, Risk and Crash History

Bloom Energy Corporation, industrials (market value $58.0 billion), an S&P 500 member: how it compared with the S&P 500, how it behaved in every crash since 2008, its risk‑adjusted returns and what analysts said. Data as of Oct 30, 2026.

Published Updated 4 min readHow we research

What changed since Oct 26

Exent re-checks this page every day. Ratings appear 30 days after they are published; the top‑ranked analysts’ calls are not counted here, they are in Gems.

+1 new rating50% Buy ratings (was 52%)22 analysts covering (was 23)+53.7% 1‑year return through Oct 30 (was +227.5%)

Key takeaways

  • BE returned +549.9% over the 5 years to Oct 30, 2026 versus +75.9% for the S&P 500: it beat the index.
  • Its 5-year Sharpe ratio was 0.70 against 0.58 for the S&P 500.
  • Its deepest crisis drawdown was −78.2% in the covid crash (feb–mar 2020) (S&P 500: −34.1%).
  • Five‑year volatility was 86.0% and beta 3.66.
  • 22 analysts rated it in the past year; 50% of their latest calls were Buy.
  • BE beat earnings estimates in 8 of its last 12 reports; the stock moved 12.0% on average, up or down, around each report.

What do the best‑ranked analysts on BE say now? See it in Exent Gems →

Did BE beat the S&P 500?

Over the 5 years to Oct 30, 2026, Bloom Energy Corporation (BE) returned +549.9% including dividends, versus +75.9% for the S&P 500 (SPY). It beat the index by 474.0 percentage points, or +45.4% a year against +12.0%.

PeriodBES&P 500BE per yearS&P 500 per yearResult
1 year+53.7%+12.0%+53.7%+12.0%Beat
3 years+1,854%+87.4%+169.3%+23.3%Beat
5 years+549.9%+75.9%+45.4%+12.0%Beat
Period1 year3 years5 years
BE+53.7%+1,854%+549.9%
S&P 500+12.0%+87.4%+75.9%
BE per year+53.7%+169.3%+45.4%
S&P 500 per year+12.0%+23.3%+12.0%
ResultBeatBeatBeat

Total return with dividends reinvested, from month-end prices to Oct 30, 2026. Beating the index on raw return is only half the story: the next section adjusts for the risk taken. See also how to beat the S&P 500.

BE is in the S&P 500 (members as of Oct 20, 2026); the list shows every member’s return against the index.

What Wall Street analysts say about BE

In the 12 months to 30 days ago, 22 analysts published 235 ratings on BE. Their latest calls were 50% Buy, 50% Hold and 0% Sell. 8 of them rank 4★ or higher in Exent’s analyst scoring, which is based on each analyst’s past price‑target hit rate and returns.

The consensus 12‑month price target was $144.08 (range $55.00–$207.00), −26.6% from the last price. Remember that the average analyst’s target is hit only about half the time: how accurate are price targets?

Top‑ranked analyst coveringFirmStarsPrice‑target hit rate
Manav GuptaUBS5.0★58.4%
??????4.9★58.3%
??????4.9★50.0%
??????4.9★55.3%
??????4.9★58.2%

Ratings are shown with a 30‑day delay. Who the top‑ranked analysts on BE are, their live calls and the median target of only the top‑rated analysts are in Exent Gems.

The average analyst’s target is reached about 53.1% of the time; Exent Gems is built on the top 50 of Exent’s ranking,where some reached 90% or more over the last two years. Unlock the top 50 analysts.

BE returns by year vs the S&P 500

BE beat the S&P 500 in 4 of the 7 full calendar years shown.

YearBES&P 500Difference
2026 (to Oct 30, 2026)+133.8%+11.7%+122.1%
2025+291.2%+17.7%+273.5%
2024+50.1%+24.9%+25.2%
2023−22.6%+26.2%−48.8%
2022−12.8%−18.2%+5.4%
2021−23.5%+28.7%−52.2%
2020+283.7%+18.3%+265.4%
2019−25.2%+31.2%−56.4%

BE risk-adjusted returns: Sharpe, Sortino and volatility

Over 5 years, BE had a Sharpe ratio of 0.70 against 0.58 for the S&P 500, so it earned more return per unit of risk than the index. Its annualized volatility was 128.8% and its beta 3.66: it tended to move about 3.7× as much as the market.

MetricBES&P 500
Annual return+45.4%+12.0%
Volatility (annualized)128.8%15.5%
Sharpe ratio0.700.58
Sortino ratio2.010.91
Max drawdown (month-end)−71.9%−23.9%
Beta to the S&P 5003.661.00

Sharpe divides return above cash by total volatility; Sortino counts only downside volatility. Both use monthly returns and the 1–3 month T‑bill ETF (BIL) as the risk‑free rate.

How BE behaved in past crashes

BE’s deepest fall in the crises below was −78.2% in the covid crash (feb–mar 2020), against −34.1% for the S&P 500. The last column turns that into money: what a $100,000 position would have lost from peak to trough.

CrisisBES&P 500Loss on $100,000
COVID crash (Feb–Mar 2020)−78.2%−34.1%−$78,210
2022 inflation bear market−53.7%−25.4%−$53,720
2025 tariff selloff−37.4%−19.0%−$37,360
WindowBE max drawdown
Last 1 year−52.7%
Last 3 years−52.7%
Last 5 years−75.9%
Last 10 years−92.5%

Peak‑to‑trough declines from daily prices inside each crisis window. A crash replay does not predict the next crisis; it shows how much room a holding needs. Run the same replay on a whole portfolio with the crash test.

What moves with BE, and what doesn’t

Correlation runs from −1 (moves opposite) to +1 (moves in lockstep). Over the last 60 months of monthly returns, BE’s correlation with the S&P 500 was 0.44, with the Nasdaq‑100 0.43, with long Treasuries (TLT) 0.29 and with gold (GLD) 0.11.

Adding a 5% BE position to an S&P 500 portfolio would have moved its 5‑year volatility from 15.5% to 18.4%.

Least correlated large capsCorrelationMost correlated large capsCorrelation
ABBV−0.18WDC0.56
LLY−0.17INTC0.55
MRK−0.16PWR0.51
INTU−0.16APH0.46
REGN−0.15GS0.44

Holdings that are highly correlated behave like one position in a selloff. See how to find hidden overlap.

Latest BE upgrades, downgrades and price‑target changes

DateRating and targetAnalyst
Oct 23Target cut
Buy
Target $292, was $314
Mark Strouse
J.P. Morgan
Oct 7Target raised
Buy
Target $350, was $325
Manav Gupta
UBS
Oct 1Target raised
Hold
Target $308, was $276
Christine Cho CFA
Barclays
Sep 14Target raised
Buy
Target $351, was $242
Maheep Mandloi
Mizuho Securities
Sep 8Target raised
Buy
Target $330, was $290
Tim Moore CFA
Clear Street
Sep 6Target raised
Buy
Target $325, was $300
Manav Gupta
UBS

Named analysts’ rating and price‑target changes on BE in the 5 weeks to Oct 4, 2026, shown 30 days after publication (the free analysts’ calls 3 days after). The top‑ranked analysts’ calls are in Exent Gems. See all of the latest analyst upgrades and downgrades.

Do analysts get BE right?

Of the 289 analyst price targets on BE set from 2019 until a year ago, 74.0% were reached within 12 months (data to Oct 20, 2026), 5.4 points above the 68.6% hit rate of the median stock in Exent’s study of 794 stocks. Targets that were reached took a median of 35 days. The median target sat 26.8% above the share price on the day it was set.

Where analysts said BE would be by now: a year ago, 15 analysts had a price target on BE, and the median of their latest targets was $143.00. On Oct 20, 2026 BE closed at $222.72, 55.7% above it.

74.0%of targets reached within 12 monthsMedian stock: 68.6%
35 daysmedian time to reach a target
+55.7%price now vs the median target set a year ago
AfterCallsMove on the call3 months vs S&P 500
Upgrades of BE16+6.8%+23.1%
Upgrades, all stocks11,514+2.5%+3.4%
Downgrades of BE18−5.8%+17.7%
Downgrades, all stocks10,700−3.0%−1.6%

The move on the call runs from the close before the rating change to the close after it; the last column is the stock’s return minus the S&P 500’s over the next three months. Averages of rating changes on BE through Sep 15, 2026; analysts are not named here. Do analyst upgrades move stocks?

How BE moves after earnings

BE beat the consensus earnings‑per‑share estimate in 8 of its last 12 quarterly reports, through the one on Jul 28, 2026, and the revenue estimate in 8 of 12. From the close before each report to the close after it, the stock moved 12.0% on average, up or down, against 6.8% for the average report across the 1,002 US stocks Exent tracks. It rose after 6 of the 12 reports. In 4 of the 8 beats the stock still fell.

8/12earnings beats
±12.0%average move per report
6/12reports followed by a rise
ReportEPS vs estimateRevenue vs estimateStock move
Jul 28, 2026$0.78 vs $0.41+29.0%−13.0%
Apr 28, 2026$0.44 vs $0.12+39.1%+22.7%
Feb 5, 2026$0.45 vs $0.31+19.9%−2.9%
Oct 28, 2025$0.15 vs $0.10+21.5%+23.2%
Jul 31, 2025$0.10 vs $0.01+6.7%−2.4%
Apr 30, 2025$0.03 vs −$0.07−15.2%−11.1%
Feb 27, 2025$0.43 vs $0.32+12.8%+2.6%
Nov 7, 2024−$0.01 vs $0.08−14.0%+20.1%

Reported earnings per share against the consensus estimate, revenue surprise in percent, and the stock’s price change over the two sessions around the report. How stocks move after earnings

Where BE’s revenue comes from

In fiscal 2025, BE’s largest segment was Product, with 75.6% of $2.0 billion revenue (+41.1% on the year before).

SegmentRevenueShareGrowth
Product$1.5 billion75.6%+41.1%
Service$228.3 million11.3%+6.2%
Installation$205.9 million10.2%+59.1%
Electricity$60.4 million3.0%+14.2%

From BE’s annual filings; segment growth compares fiscal 2025 with the year before. Regions are as each company reports them, so one company’s “Asia Pacific” is not another’s. China counts the regions a company reports as China, Greater China or Hong Kong; a separately reported Taiwan is not counted. Which S&P 500 companies depend most on China?

Members of Congress who traded BE

As of Oct 20, 2026, 3 members of Congress had disclosed 16 trades in BE (9 buys and 7 sales) in STOCK Act disclosures filed with the House and Senate. The latest public trade is dated Jul 28, 2026.

Trade dateMemberTypeAmount
Jul 28, 2026Nancy PelosiBuy$500,001–$1,000,000
Jan 30, 2026Gilbert CisnerosBuy$1,001–$15,000
Dec 24, 2025Gilbert CisnerosSale$1,001–$15,000
Nov 18, 2025Gilbert CisnerosBuy$1,001–$15,000
Oct 17, 2025Gilbert CisnerosBuy$1,001–$15,000
Sep 26, 2025Gilbert CisnerosBuy$1,001–$15,000
Jul 15, 2024Austin ScottSale$1,001–$15,000
Oct 21, 2021Austin ScottSale$1,001–$15,000
Sep 14, 2021Austin ScottBuy$1,001–$15,000
Mar 17, 2021Austin ScottSale$1,001–$15,000

Amounts are the ranges members report, not exact values. The STOCK Act gives members up to 45 days to disclose a trade, so trades appear weeks after they are made. See every member’s disclosed trades

One trade in BE disclosed in the last 30 days is in Exent Radar.

Are BE insiders buying or selling?

In the 12 months to Oct 20, 2026, BE insiders made no open‑market purchases and 44 sales worth $165.2 million, according to SEC Form 4 filings. The last open‑market purchase on record was on May 17, 2021.

After the 12 insider purchases of $10,000 or more since 2012, BE lagged the S&P 500 by an average of 48.3 percentage points over the next 12 months; 8% of them were followed by a beat. Across all 17,865 insider purchases in Exent’s study, the average was +17.2% and the median +1.0% against the index.

Q1 ’25
Q2 ’25
Q3 ’25
Q4 ’25
Q1 ’26
Q2 ’26
Q3 ’26
Q4 ’26
DateInsiderRoleValue
May 17, 2021Immelt Jeffrey RDirector$753,046
Aug 14, 2020Immelt Jeffrey RDirector$1.0 million
Mar 8, 2019Sridhar KRPresident, CEO$108,160
Feb 12, 2019Zervigon EddyDirector$473,000
Nov 26, 2018Morgan Stanley10 percent owner$150

The table lists the latest open‑market purchases on record, leaving out the last 30 days. The chart counts Form 4 purchases and sales by calendar quarter. Purchases are open‑market buys; sales include planned sales under 10b5‑1 trading plans. Do insider buys beat the market?

How much of BE is sold short?

As of the Sep 30, 2026 settlement date, 7.58% of BE’s float was sold short: 21.0 million shares, or 1.0 days of average trading volume to cover. A year earlier (Oct 15, 2025) it was 13.47%. The median across the 997 US stocks Exent tracks was 4.77%, so BE is more heavily shorted than most.

  • Apr 30, 20269.45%
  • May 29, 202610.31%
  • Jun 30, 20266.99%
  • Jul 31, 20267.35%
  • Aug 31, 20266.94%
  • Sep 30, 20267.58%

From FINRA short‑interest reports, filed twice a month; the bars show the short share of the float at each month‑end. Days to cover divides the shares short by the average daily volume. The most shorted stocks

How many institutions own BE?

At the end of Q2 2026 (Jun 30, 2026), 1,396 institutions reported holding BE in 13F filings, up 326 from the quarter before and up from 439 a year earlier. Their reported holdings add up to 81.1% of BE’s shares. In the quarter 819 institutions added to their positions and 394 cut them.

1,39613F holders
397new positions
91positions closed
81.1%of shares held by 13F filers

Investment managers with over $100 million in US equities file 13F reports within 45 days of each quarter end, so this is the latest complete quarter. Holdings can add up to more than 100% when shares are lent and counted twice. Which stocks institutions are buying and selling

Is BE diluting shareholders?

BE’s diluted share count rose 73.3% over the five fiscal years to fiscal 2025 and rose 5.7% in fiscal 2025 alone. Each share now owns a smaller slice of the company. The median change across the 1,005 US stocks Exent tracks was −0.1%.

BE did not buy back shares in fiscal 2025.

+5.7%share count, 1 year
+73.3%share count, 5 years
0.0%stock pay as % of revenue
0.00%buyback yield

Weighted‑average diluted shares from BE’s annual income statements; stock‑based compensation and buybacks from its cash‑flow statement. Stock dilution and stock‑based compensation, explained

BE financial health scores

In Exent’s Oct 20, 2026 snapshot, BE’s Altman Z‑score was 10.56, in the safe zone (where 465 of the 794 non‑financial US stocks Exent tracks sit). Its Piotroski F‑score was 5 out of 9; 80% of scored stocks reach 5 or more.

10.56Altman Z‑score: safe zone
5/9Piotroski F‑score

The Altman Z‑score combines five balance‑sheet and earnings ratios into one bankruptcy‑risk score: below 1.81 is the distress zone, 1.81–2.99 grey, above 2.99 safe. It is not meaningful for banks, insurers and REITs. The Piotroski F‑score counts nine yes/no tests of profitability, leverage and efficiency; 8–9 is strong, 0–2 weak. Both come from the latest annual statements. Which stocks have the highest bankruptcy risk?

What BE talks about on earnings calls

On its latest earnings call (Jul 28, 2026), BE’s executives and analysts mentioned AI 19 times, against 26 on the call before (Apr 28, 2026); the average across 455 S&P 500 calls that quarter was 12.9. After AI, the most mentioned topic was data centers (15). Tariffs and recession did not come up.

MentionsJul ’26Apr ’26Feb ’26Oct ’25
AI19261932
AI agents0000
Data centers15112125
Tariffs0010
China3000
Recession0000
  • AI
    Jul ’26
    19
    Apr ’26
    26
    Feb ’26
    19
    Oct ’25
    32
  • AI agents
    Jul ’26
    0
    Apr ’26
    0
    Feb ’26
    0
    Oct ’25
    0
  • Data centers
    Jul ’26
    15
    Apr ’26
    11
    Feb ’26
    21
    Oct ’25
    25
  • Tariffs
    Jul ’26
    0
    Apr ’26
    0
    Feb ’26
    1
    Oct ’25
    0
  • China
    Jul ’26
    3
    Apr ’26
    0
    Feb ’26
    0
    Oct ’25
    0
  • Recession
    Jul ’26
    0
    Apr ’26
    0
    Feb ’26
    0
    Oct ’25
    0

Word counts in the full transcript of each call, prepared remarks and Q&A, newest first. “AI” also counts generative AI and large language models; “AI agents” counts agentic AI. Which companies talk most about AI?

Which ETFs hold BE?

As of Oct 20, 2026, 48 of the 304 ETFs Exent tracks held BE. Its largest weight is in ICLN (iShares Global Clean Energy ETF), at 6.51% of the fund.

ETFFundWeight of BE
ICLNiShares Global Clean Energy ETF6.51%
VOTVanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund1.83%
FDGAmerican Century Focused Dynamic Growth ETF1.63%
XLIState Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF1.26%
VISVanguard Industrials Index Fund ETF Shares1.13%
VOVanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares0.77%
MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF0.42%
CLSEConvergence Long/Short Equity ETF0.39%

Owning several of these funds stacks the same position. How much do VOO, QQQ and VTI overlap?

How much is BE’s CEO paid?

KR Sridhar, BE’s Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, received total pay of $3.5 million for fiscal 2025, down 92.2% from $45.0 million for fiscal 2024, according to the company’s proxy statement filed with the SEC on Apr 8, 2026. The median CEO pay across the 378 S&P 500 companies Exent tracks was $17.2 million, so BE’s CEO earned less than most.

Pay componentAmountShare of total
Salary$935,38526.7%
Incentive plan (cash)$2.5 million70.5%
Other$97,3622.8%
Other top executivesRoleTotal pay, 2025
Aman JoshiChief Commercial Officer$5.9 million
Shawn M. SoderbergChief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary$4.4 million
Satish ChitooriChief Operations Officer$4.4 million
Maciej KurzymskiChief Accounting Officer and Acting Principal Financial Officer$1.7 million

Figures from the summary compensation table of the proxy statement; awards count at their grant‑date value, so one large multi‑year grant can make a single year stand out. CEO pay across the S&P 500

The right benchmark for BE

Exent matches every holding to the index with the most similar risk. For BE that is SPY (the S&P 500). Comparing a holding with an index that carries very different risk makes good results look bad and risky ones look clever. Read why the S&P 500 is the wrong benchmark for most portfolios.

Other industrials stocks

TickerName5‑year returnVolatility (5y)
GEGE Aerospace+374.0%31.1%
CATCaterpillar Inc.+231.6%32.1%
RTXRTX Corporation+150.3%23.8%
GEVGE Vernova Inc.——
DEDeere & Company+110.6%29.7%
UNPUnion Pacific Corporation+41.0%22.6%
BAThe Boeing Company−17.1%37.1%
LMTLockheed Martin Corporation+119.1%23.0%

Data and methodology

Returns are total returns from month‑end adjusted closing prices (dividends reinvested) through Oct 30, 2026. Crisis drawdowns and trailing maximum drawdowns use daily prices. Analyst coverage counts ratings published in the last 12 months, shown with a 30‑day delay. Full method: Exent methodology.

Company data as of Oct 20, 2026. The move around an earnings report runs from the close before it to the close after it; a price target counts as hit when the stock closed at or beyond it within 12 months (Exent analyst data). Revenue by region and segment, share counts and executive pay come from company filings; insider trades from SEC Form 4, short interest from FINRA, institutional ownership from 13F filings, Congress trades from STOCK Act disclosures filed with the House and Senate, federal contracts from USAspending.gov. Filings from the last 30 days are shown as counts only.

Past performance does not guarantee future results. Historical figures are calculated by Exent from market data and are for education only; they are not investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

Check BE with Exent Gems

Wall Street’s average BE price target is 26.6% below the latest share price. See what the best‑ranked analysts on BE say now in Exent Gems.

  1. Exent ranks Wall Street analysts by their past price‑target hit rate and returns, and keeps the best‑ranked few.
  2. Gems shows who the top‑ranked analysts covering BE are, their live calls and the median target of only the top‑rated analysts.
  3. Gems flags the stocks where several top‑ranked analysts agree: a starting point for your own research, not a promise.

Exent is our product. Educational content, not investment advice.

Frequently asked questions

Yes. BE returned +549.9% (+45.4% a year) over the 5 years to Oct 30, 2026, versus +75.9% (+12.0% a year) for the S&P 500, including dividends.

Yes. As of Oct 20, 2026, BE (Bloom Energy Corporation) is one of the 503 stocks in the S&P 500.

BE fell −78.2% from peak to trough during the covid crash (feb–mar 2020), versus −34.1% for the S&P 500.

BE fell −53.7% from peak to trough during the 2022 inflation bear market, versus −25.4% for the S&P 500.

Over the 5 years to Oct 30, 2026, BE’s Sharpe ratio was 0.70 and its Sortino ratio 2.01, versus 0.58 and 0.91 for the S&P 500.

BE’s 5‑year annualized volatility was 86.0%, higher than the S&P 500’s 17.0%, with a beta of 3.66.

Among large US stocks, the lowest correlations with BE over the last 60 months were ABBV (−0.18), LLY (−0.17), MRK (−0.16). Its correlation with long Treasuries (TLT) was 0.29 and with gold (GLD) 0.11.

BE beat the consensus earnings-per-share estimate in 8 of its last 12 quarterly reports through Jul 28, 2026, and the revenue estimate in 8 of 12. The stock moved 12.0% on average, up or down, from the close before each report to the close after it.

KR Sridhar, BE’s Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, received $3.5 million in total pay for fiscal 2025, including a $935,385 salary and $0 in stock and option awards valued at grant, according to the proxy statement filed with the SEC on Apr 8, 2026. The median S&P 500 CEO received $17.2 million.

Yes. As of Oct 20, 2026, 3 members of Congress had disclosed 16 trades in BE (9 buys and 7 sales) in STOCK Act disclosures filed with the House and Senate.

As of the Sep 30, 2026 settlement date, 7.58% of BE’s float was sold short (21.0 million shares, 1.0 days to cover), according to FINRA short-interest reports. A year earlier it was 13.47%.

Yes. BE’s diluted share count rose 73.3% over the five fiscal years to fiscal 2025 and rose 5.7% in the latest year. Stock-based compensation was 0.0% of revenue.

What do the best‑ranked analysts say on BE now?

Exent ranks Wall Street analysts by their track record. Gems shows who the top‑ranked analysts on BE are, their latest calls and the stocks where several of them agree.

See this week’s GemsLimited offer$1.95 for full access· full access

Educational content, not investment advice. Examples are illustrative; past performance does not guarantee future results.

DISCLAIMER: Exent AI is an informational research platform and does not provide investment advice, financial advice, or act as an investment adviser, broker-dealer, or fiduciary. All content, analytics, and model outputs are provided for educational and informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any financial instrument. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Exent AI does not execute trades, hold customer funds, or provide brokerage services. Past performance and hypothetical results are not indicative of future results. Third-party data and AI-generated outputs may be incomplete or inaccurate.