Sector Snap: Solar Shares Up On Clean Tech Hopes

DEBORAH JIAN LEE

NEW YORK (AP) — Strong macro factors could boost solar companies, though weak demand, falling module prices and dim profit reports from Chinese solar companies could pressure the sector in the near term, an analyst said Tuesday.

Shares of solar stocks rose across the board in afternoon trading, as the broader market inched upward across the three major stock indices.

Jefferies & Co. analyst Paul Clegg said interest in clean tech stocks could re-ignite, but the sector's oversupply conditions raise concerns.

Other pressure in the industry includes the first-quarter loss posted Tuesday by both Solarfun Power Holdings Co. and JA Solar Holdings Co.

Solarfun's quarterly loss, however, was better than analyst expectations, and shares of the company jumped 70 cents, or 14 percent, to $5.77 in afternoon trading.

The Shanghai-based company posted a loss of 7.1 million yuan ($1 million, or roughly break-even on a U.S. dollar per-share basis), compared with a profit of 104 million yuan in the year-ago period. Revenue fell 43 percent to 684.2 million yuan ($100.1 million) from 1.2 billion yuan.