It’s Tough to Eclipse the Performance of These Solar Stocks!

Happy Eclipse Day! For the first time in 99 years, a total solar eclipse will streak across the continental U.S. later today. Viewers in a 70-mile wide swath of territory stretching southeast from Oregon to South Carolina will be treated to a total blackout. But even those of us who live elsewhere will see a partial-to-major one.

So what better way to honor this historic event than by looking at the solar stocks in our Weiss Ratings coverage universe. The good news? It’s hard to … er … “eclipse” their performance!

Let’s start with the two major ETFs focused on companies that generate revenue and earnings from solar power-related businesses. The VanEck Vectors Solar Energy ETF (KWT, Rated “D”) is the smaller of the two, with assets of only $13 million. Its longer-term track record isn’t too hot, but it’s rising fast this year – with gains of 27%. The ETF also yields around 3.3%

Next you have the Guggenheim Solar ETF (TAN, Rated “D”), with $344 million in assets. Performance is a little better at around 31% year-to-date, while its dividend yield is higher at 3.9%.

But if you’re looking to escape the darkness of our Weiss Ratings SELL zone, and step into the light, you’re going to have to do more work. That’s just what my team and I did recently. This table ranks the largest holdings of those two ETFs in descending order by Rating. It also includes data on market capitalization and YTD performance:

You can see the totality of the list is in positive territory, and the gains for many names are stellar. Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital (HASI, Rated “B-”) is the highest rated, and it sports a 21.5% return so far in 2017. That’s almost double the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY, Rated “B”). Organized as a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), Maryland-based Hannon provides equity and debt financing to companies pursuing solar-based, energy efficiency projects.

The next highest-rated solar stock, SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG, Rated “C+”), is really shining bright – up more than 121%! The Israeli company supplies components and equipment used in photovoltaic installations globally.

Will the strength continue? Sector analysts and company officials sound relatively bullish. They cite a healthy increase in global solar installations, with particularly strong demand coming from emerging markets like China and India.

So you may want to do some research using our Ratings data, then consider sprinkling one or two of these names in your portfolio. Now grab a pair of reliable eclipse glasses, and enjoy today’s spectacular solar show!

Until next time,

Mike