Coal Stocks Rebound, Weaker Yuan Helps Utilities and Solar
(Continued from Prior Part)
Solar ETF
During the week ended August 14, three out of the ten solar stocks listed in the United States that we track gained, one remained unchanged, and six saw a drop. The Guggenheim Solar ETF (TAN) was down 0.4% while the broad-based SPDR S&P500 ETF (SPY) gained 0.7% during the week.
The devaluation of the yuan helped some Chinese solar power players listed in the United States. A weaker yuan means improved profitability for these players. Since their costs are mostly denominated in the yuan and their revenues are denominated in dollars, a weaker yuan means higher revenues in yuan and, in turn, higher profitability.
Top gainers
JA Solar (JASO) gained 6.5% to $8.05 with a market capitalization of $406.3 million.
Trina Solar (TSL) gained 5.4% to $9.88 with a market capitalization of $910.0 million.
Yingli Green Energy (YGE) gained 0.8% but remained in the penny stock zone at $0.86 with a market capitalization of $156.3 million.
Top losers
Ascent Solar Technologies (ASTI) lost 8.5% to $0.22.
The fall in SunEdison (SUNE) continued for the second straight week. The stock lost 5.5% to end the week at $14.14 with a market capitalization of $4.5 billion. SUNE is under pressure due to substantially weaker-than-expected 2Q15 earnings and high leverage. China Sunergy (CSUN) and Renesola (SOL) lost 1.9% and 1.5%, respectively.
FirstSolar (FSLR) lost 1.1%, falling to $51.51 with a market capitalization of $5.2 billion.
Yieldcos gain
While solar stocks showed a mixed performance, solar yieldcos gained as investors flocked to safer assets. Like utilities, yieldcos provide predictable cash flows and attractive dividends. 8point3 Energy (CAFD) gained 11.8% to $15.77 with a market capitalization of $1.1 billion. NRG Yield (NYLD) gained 6.0% to reach $16.89 with a market capitalization of $3.1 billion.
SunEdison’s newly formed yieldco, TerraForm Global (GLBL), was the only loser among yieldcos, with a 9% fall.
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