Solar stocks rally as solar gets a mention in Harris-Trump debate

By Claudia Assis

Growing consensus the IRA, a crucial solar booster, would be unchanged

Long-battered U.S. solar stocks rallied Wednesday, with shares of residential-solar provider SunRun Inc. among the leaders and up more than 6%.

The volatile sector has lost a quarter of its value this year, mired in concerns about lower demand, regulatory changes in key states for solar, and rising inventories.

During Tuesday's debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump mentioned that he likes solar, but not the amount of land used for solar projects.

That could have been a positive for residential solar, analysts at Mizuho said in a note Wednesday. The analysts cautioned, however, that there were no details and it was unclear "how his views on solar would translate into policy."

In an earlier note this week, the Mizuho analysts, citing meetings with several solar-company executives, said that most people in the industry did not expect any changes to the Inflation Reduction Act "even under potential Republican sweep."

The IRA, among other provisions, calls for federal tax credits on solar arrays, batteries, and other products and labor related to the projects.

Besides SunRun (RUN), other solar stocks rallying Wednesday included First Solar Inc. (FSLR), SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (SEDG) and Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ)

The Invesco Solar ETF TAN has lost nearly 25% this year, contrasting with gains of about 14% for the S&P 500 index SPX.

-Claudia Assis

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09-11-24 1154ET

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