Tag Archives: scty

SpaceX Seen As Having Best Shot Landing Booster On Floating Barge

Friday’s planned launch of the Falcon 9 rocket by SpaceX has special meaning for two reasons. It’s the first time SpaceX will return to the International Space Station to deliver cargo since its last cargo mission in June resulted in failure, when the second-stage booster exploded about 21 miles high, due to a part failure. It’s also seen as the best shot that SpaceX has at finally sticking the landing of its massive booster rocket on a floating barge on the Atlantic Ocean, after three previous attempts failed. Tesla Motors ( TSLA ) CEO Elon Musk founded SpaceX. It’s based in Hawthorne, Calif., where Musk also has a Tesla facility. In addition to running Tesla and SpaceX, Musk is chairman of SolarCity ( SCTY ). SpaceX did manage to land the booster rocket on land during a launch in December. But the barge landing is far more difficult, and much more important, if SpaceX is able to reuse its rockets on a regular basis. Reusing rockets will enable SpaceX to lower the cost of its launches. The most recent attempt to land the rocket on a barge in March came close but missed the target. In a tweet at the time, Elon Musk said “next flight has a good chance .” At a news conference Thursday, Hans Koenigsmann, vice president of flight reliability for SpaceX, said “We have more confidence in this landing.” The liftoff is scheduled to take place at 4:43 p.m. ET at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida. Live countdown coverage begins at 3:30 p.m. The SpaceX Dragon capsule will carry nearly 7,000 pounds of cargo to the space station.

SunEdison Bankruptcy Whispers Char SolarCity, First Solar, SunPower

SunEdison ‘s ( SUNE ) inferno continued Wednesday, a day after rumors flared that it might be in debtor-in-possession talks with creditors — often seen as a precursor to a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. In the stock market today , SunEdison stock plunged 15% to 1.27 and near its all-time low of 1.21 touched on Feb. 26. Shares have crashed 96% since July 20, when SunEd announced a bid to acquire installer  Vivint Solar ( VSLR ). Shares of Vivint Solar and of SunEd yield company TerraForm Power ( TERP ) fell 11% and 3.8%, respectively. The conflagration also charred SolarCity ( SCTY ), SunPower ( SPWR ) and First Solar ( FSLR ) stocks, which tumbled 10%, 7.6% and 4.3%, respectively. More broadly, IBD’s 21-company Energy-Solar industry group felt the burn, falling a collective 4.3%, its biggest single-day drop since Feb. 11. Axiom Securities downgraded SunEdison stock to a sell rating and lowered its price target to 22 cents from 39 cents. Intraday, Stifel Nicolaus suspended its rating on SunEdison stock. On Tuesday, SunEdison executives declined to comment on “market rumors and speculation.” SunEd is reportedly negotiating with holders of $725 million in second-lien loans, according to a report by Debtwire, cited by Reuters. SunEdison’s woes tie back to its plan to acquire Vivint Solar in July, S&P Global Market Intelligence analyst Angelo Zino told IBD earlier this month, after Vivint scrapped its sale to SunEd on financial worries. At the time, SunEd’s banks were reportedly hedging on the deal. SunEdison and TerraForm Power had just delayed their 10-K filings amid an ongoing investigation into SunEd’s liquidity stance. Now, TerraForm Power faces possible delisting after falling out of Nasdaq compliance, as well as a potential slew of investor class action lawsuits . Four law firms are investigating whether TerraForm Power violated securities laws.

Sunrun Unveils Tesla-Backed Storage In Net-Metering Rattled Hawaii

No. 2 residential solar installer Sunrun ( RUN ) could trigger Hawaiian solar growth with a Tesla Motors ( TSLA ) battery-backed storage offering following regulators’ 2015 decision to cut net-metering subsidies, a Credit Suisse analyst said Monday. And despite a bulkier subsidy cut in Nevada that doesn’t grandfather in existing customers, Sunrun will flare on its impressive access to capital, Credit Suisse analyst Patrick Jobin wrote in a research report. Jobin retained an outperform rating and 21 price target on Sunrun stock. Sunrun stock was up a fraction in afternoon trading on the stock market today , while shares of No. 1 installer  SolarCity ( SCTY ) were down 1%. IBD’s 21-company Energy-Solar industry group was down nearly 1%, after falling 1.5% Friday. It ranks No. 54 out of 197 groups tracked. Year to date, Sunrun and SolarCity stocks are down a respective 43% and 47%, under-performing the industry group that has fallen 22% on continued volatility in Nevada despite Congress’ late December extension to a key federal subsidy. Still, “industry dynamics continue to favor Sunrun and SolarCity and highlight increasing barriers to entry,” Jobin wrote. “Further, we were impressed with Sunrun’s ability to outmaneuver peers in the capital markets.” Jobin sees a 214% upside to Sunrun stock. Sunrun, SolarCity Curb 2016 Growth In Q4, Sunrun guided to 40% growth in 2016 vs. consensus expectations for 60%-80% growth, echoing SolarCity, which earlier indicated 44% growth vs. traditional annual growth of 80%. But Sunrun and SolarCity differ in their rationale. SolarCity is aiming to become cash flow positive. Sunrun is focusing on cost reductions and maximized returns and, this month, guided to a 15% year-over-year reduction in 2016 for its channel business . Instead, Sunrun now expects to double its direct business over the course of 2016. “The company is on the fastest path to reaching the ‘Holy Grail’ of residential solar leasing companies whereby the third-party capital can cover all upfront costs,” Jobin wrote. Sunrun also unveiled a solar-plus-storage solution coined BrightBox to reinvigorate Hawaiian solar growth, after the state suspended payments to solar customers for excess energy fed back into the grid. The state was at 17% solar penetration when that vote came down. Firms like SunPower ( SPWR ), SolarCity, SolarEdge ( SEDG ) and Sunrun have long worked to make solar storage economical. Without it, utilities must buy the excess energy fed back into the grid. In 2015, however, Nevada and Hawaii cut net-metering payments to solar customers. Within a day, SolarCity and Sunrun said they would exit Nevada, the latter threatening to file suit. Now, Sunrun has managed to reduce its solar storage costs by 50% year over year, Jobin wrote. BrightBox customers are expected to reduce their utility bills by 15%. “The adoption of solar plus storage, if economic, can mitigate the risk in other states if utilities degrade the economics of net-metered energy,” he wrote. And “a solar plus storage solution in Hawaii should allow growth to resume.” In Hawaii, neighborhood constraints have restricted new customers from adopting solar. The BrightBox solution circumvents those restrictions, allowing Sunrun to tap into the remaining 83% of the state without solar.