First Solar still has substantially room to run even after rallying about 80% over the past two months, with tailwinds from tariffs and data center demand on the horizon, according to Goldman Sachs. Goldman raised its stock price target for First Solar by nearly $31 to $302 per share, implying 11% upside from Friday’s close of $271.76. First Solar is up 44% over the past month, outperforming the Invesco Solar ETF and the S & P500 which have gained 12.9% and 2.3% during the same period. “We remain bullish on the outlook for FSLR and believe several tailwinds could support higher [average selling prices] or potential capacity expansion,” analysts led by Brian Lee told clients in a Monday note. First Solar is poised to benefit as foreign competitors face higher tariffs. The U.S. in May ended a tariff for bifacial solar panels, which play a key role in the utility-scale market, for manufacturers in China and other countries. This could allow First Solar to raise prices due to fewer cheap imports, according to Goldman. Separately, the Biden administration also announced in May that the U.S. will increase tariffs on imported solar modules from China to 50% from 25% previously. First Solar is also party to a trade case that could result in the imposition of tariffs on solar module manufacturers from four Southeast Asian nations. FSLR TAN 3M line FSLR vs. Tan First Solar is also poised to benefit from rising electricity demand as tech companies seek renewable energy to power data centers and artificial intelligence. Goldman has estimated that power demand from data centers will more than double to 8% of total U.S. consumption by 2030. Amazon recently announced plans in April to invest $11 billion on a data center in Indiana which will include generative AI technologies. Microsoft and Brookfield Asset Management signed an agreement in May to add 10.5 gigawatts of renewable capacity between 2026 and 2030. “While FSLR is not explicitly mentioned as a supplier for these announcements, we believe the company is uniquely positioned to benefit from this trend as the largest domestic panel manufacturer,” Lee and his team told their clients. First Solar hasn’t announced any firm plans build out its manufacturing capacity on rising demand, though the company indicated on its first quarter earnings call that it was warming to the idea. Goldman sees First Solar’s earnings per share increasing by about 20% in 2027 if the company adds a new plant.
https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/107379654-17091325072022-07-11t202157z_1144381774_rc2m7v9wyars_rtrmadp_0_usa-solar.jpeg?v=1709140312&w=1920&h=1080
Source link
