EVgo Surges 47% on LS Power's $2-a-Share Buyout Bid

EVgo Inc. shares jumped 47% on Monday, the stock's best single-day performance since October 2024, after controlling shareholder LS Power Equity Advisors proposed taking the fast-charging network private. The all-cash offer of $2 per Class A share represents a 59% premium to Friday's close.

That kind of premium typically signals conviction. It also signals how far EVgo stock had fallen before the bid arrived. Shares are down 36% year-to-date, a decline that has left the company trading well below where it stood even a year ago. A 59% pop from a depressed base is less a vote of confidence in the business and more a reflection of how cheap the stock had become.

According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, LS Power currently owns roughly 178.7 million shares, giving it about 56% of combined voting power. That stake is the reason this deal matters more than a typical acquisition offer. EVgo's board has formed a special committee of independent directors to evaluate the proposal, but the company has made no decision on how to respond. The offer is non-binding, carries no guarantee of completion, and can be withdrawn or revised at any point.

LS Power has structured the proposal as a long-form merger rather than a tender offer. That distinction matters for minority shareholders. A long-form merger requires full board approval and a formal shareholder vote, giving public holders broader disclosure and appraisal rights than they would get under a faster tender-offer structure. LS Power also stated it has no interest in selling its stake or supporting any rival change-of-control transaction, and said it will only move forward if the independent special committee recommends the deal.

The Ownership History

LS Power's relationship with EVgo predates the public listing by years. The firm acquired the company from Vision Ridge Partners in late 2019, completing that deal in early 2020. EVgo went public in July 2021 through a SPAC merger with Climate Change Crisis Real Impact I Acquisition Corporation, a transaction that valued the combined entity at roughly $2.6 billion and left LS Power in majority control from day one.

That control structure is central to how this situation should be read. LS Power has been the dominant shareholder since before EVgo had public investors, and this proposal would simply formalize what has effectively been the case for years: one firm calling the shots. A completed deal would delist EVGO from Nasdaq entirely, removing public market access to the stock.

The business itself operates more than 1,200 fast-charging sites across 47 states, placing it among the larger dedicated EV charging networks in the country. The sector has struggled with a familiar tension: build-out costs are high, utilization rates remain uneven, and the timeline to profitability has stretched longer than many investors anticipated when EV charging stocks first went public via SPAC in 2021. EVgo is no exception. The company is scheduled to report third-quarter results on November 9, with Wall Street consensus, per data from Fiscal AI, calling for revenue of $94.62 million and a loss per share of $0.12.

A loss of that size on revenue approaching $95 million tells a story that's common across the charging infrastructure space: top-line growth hasn't yet translated into bottom-line discipline. That backdrop likely factors into LS Power's timing. Buying out minority holders before a potential inflection point, if one exists, would let the controlling shareholder capture future upside without sharing it with public markets.

Retail sentiment reacted sharply to the news. On Stocktwits, sentiment toward EVGO flipped from bearish to bullish within 24 hours, while message volume spiked from normal to extremely high. Some retail investors on the platform dismissed the $2 offer as a lowball, arguing it undervalues the company's asset base and growth trajectory. Others expressed hope that the special committee could negotiate better terms before any deal closes.

That tension, between a board process designed to protect minority shareholders and a majority owner with every incentive to pay as little as possible, is the crux of what happens next. Special committees exist precisely to prevent controlling shareholders from using their voting power to force through an unfair price. Whether this one has the leverage to extract meaningful concessions from LS Power, which already controls 56% of the vote, is an open question.

What Investors Should Watch

The special committee's response will be the next material catalyst. Investors should watch for signs of whether the committee pushes back on price, retains independent financial advisors, or signals early acceptance of the $2 figure. Any commentary from LS Power about flexibility on terms would also move the stock meaningfully, given how thinly traded sentiment can swing in situations like this.

The November 9 earnings report adds another layer. If EVgo's results come in meaningfully better or worse than the consensus loss of $0.12 per share, that could shift the negotiating dynamics even with a deal on the table. Strong utilization numbers or signs of margin improvement could embolden the special committee to push for a higher price. A weak quarter could cut the other way, strengthening LS Power's hand.

For shareholders weighing whether to hold through the process, the math is straightforward but not comfortable. The stock still sits well below its SPAC-era valuation and far off its 2021 highs. A $2 offer locks in a known outcome at a premium to Friday's depressed price, but it caps upside for anyone betting that the EV charging sector eventually works through its growing pains. Given that LS Power controls the vote and has stated no interest in alternatives, the realistic range of outcomes narrows mostly to the final price, not whether a deal happens at all.