Forbes: Sunny Day For the Solar Sector
Carl Gutierrez, 11.14.07, 5:10 PM ET
Solar stocks were boosted Wednesday by strong earnings and new deals in the pipeline.
Shares of China's Canadian Solar (nasdaq: CSIQ - news - people ) were up 39.2%, or $4.40, to $15.64 on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange in afternoon-trading Wednesday after the company reported surprising third-quarter earnings and a fourth-quarter outlook exceeding Wall Street’s expectations.
Due to strong demand and operational improvements, it lifted its full-year sales outlook by $30 million to $285 million to $295 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial on average had expected sales of $262.3 million.
"Customer demand remains strong and our operational structure is now much leaner," Chief Executive Shawn Qu said in a statement. "We are positioned for further growth as we demonstrate the successful leveraging of our operating model."
Canadian Solar's rise rippled through the solar sector as San Jose, Calif.-based SunPower (nasdaq: SPWR - news - people ) rose 9.9%, or $10.77, to $119.19 in early-afternoon trading; Marlboro, Mass.-based Evergreen Solar (nasdaq: ESLR - news - people ) increased 8.4%, or $1.08, to $14.00; and First Solar (nasdaq: FSLR - news - people ) added 4.1%, or $7.70, to $195.77.
In addition to Canadian Solar's report and oil's $2.98 rise to $94.14 a barrel, investors learned that solar-products company Suntech Power Holdings (nyse: STP - news - people ) penned two silicon-wafer supply agreements that last through 2016, sending its shares up 9.2%, or $5.47, to $65.17.
Suntech did not disclose the supplier, which it described as a "major Korean conglomerate," nor the financial terms of the agreement, except to say that the contracts are fixed price.
The Associated Press contributed to this article
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