Solar Stocks Rise as Tariff Discussion Continues

Solar stocks have broken above a multi-year downtrend line. The UBS Solar basket index is up 40 percent year-to-date and 33 percent for the month to date. UBS analyst Catherine Gordon stated that lower yields and policy expectations are supporting the move. First Solar shares have led the advance and are trading near $268.

Gordon said a Section 232 tariff announcement could come in mid-to-late June. The measures under discussion include a minimum import price and possible offsets tied to domestic manufacturing investment. Windham hosted Toyo Solar on a call earlier in the week. S. production commitments.

Nextracker continues to be viewed as a core holding by some investors. Residential solar companies SolarEdge and Enphase have also risen, though analysts have questioned whether the moves will hold. Enphase recently announced a solid-state transformer product.

Gordon noted that similar technology is already under development by Schneider Electric and ABB. Last month Goldman analyst Brian Lee wrote that utility-scale demand remains resilient while residential demand stays challenged.