SoylentNews

takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

The stocks for various solar energy companies soared on the news that the U.S. Congress's new spending bill will extend solar and wind tax credits for five years [marketwatch.com]:

Several solar-energy stocks scored double-digit gains Wednesday after Congress neared an extension for a key tax credit for renewable energy. Shares of SolarCity Corp. rose 34% in the session, the largest daily gain in the company's history, to the highest closing price since early August. Shares of SunEdison Inc. rose 25%, while shares of First Solar Inc. gained nearly 10%, the biggest one-day increase since early November. Shares of SunRun Inc. were up 23%, their best showing since late August.

The tax credits solar and wind power were set to end next year. But a spending bill approved late Tuesday in a congressional quid-pro-quo would extend them for five years, including extending the current 30% credit until 2019. The bill must still be approved by the Senate and by the House, with lawmakers likely voting on it later this week. Solar companies stand to benefit the most from a credit extension, analysts at Credit Suisse said in a note Wednesday. If it passes, the bill "should solidify the ability to grow profitably in most markets" in which they operate, the analysts said.

[...] Companies also had been rushing to complete solar projects before the 2016 deadline, which cut down on their margins. Deutsch Bank analysts said margins should improve as those projects get pushed back into 2017, and added that companies with the most exposure to the residential solar U.S. market — SolarCity, SunRun, and Vivint Solar Inc. — would benefit the most. First Solar would also be a "huge beneficiary" as the utility-scale market was expected to decline the most in a post-tax-credit environment, they said.

This was very good news for Elon Musk, the CEO of SolarCity, Tesla Motors, and SpaceX, since he bought back a few hundred thousand shares of SolarCity last month [marketwatch.com]. Due to gains in SolarCity and Tesla Motors stocks following the tax credit news, Musk is reportedly $770 million richer on paper [marketwatch.com].

SolarCity [wikipedia.org] "designs, finances, and installs solar power systems."

Original Submission