5 Best Solar Stocks For 2014

Solar power has been growing like crazy. Last year the solar industry installed a record amount of solar capacity. The impact can be seen in the data. According to the Energy Information Administration, in 2012 there were 3.5 million megawatthours of electricity generated by solar photovoltaic panels. In 2013 that more than doubled to 8.3 million Mwh. And to think that a decade ago the U.S. generated just 6,000 Mwh from solar PV. Solar is closing in on price parity with the likes of coal ��with full-cycle, unsubsidized costs of about 13 cents per kilowatthour, versus 12 cents for advanced coal plants.

So is the solar revolution finally here? Not quite. Even after a decade of rampant growth solar energy still barely moves the needle in the U.S. energy mix. In fact, solar merely equals the amount of electricity that the nation generates by burning natural gas captured from landfills. And it�� only slightly more meaningful than the 7.3 million Mwh we get from burning human waste strained out of municipal sewer systems.

Top Supermarket Stocks To Own Right Now: JinkoSolar Holding Company Limited(JKS)

JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of solar power products in China and internationally. The company provides solar modules, silicon wafers and ingots, and solar cells, as well as processing services, including silicon wafer tolling services. It sells its products under the JinkoSolar brand name. The company?s customers include distributors, project developers, and system integrators. It trades its products under short-term contracts and by spot market sales. The company also produces accessory materials for solar power products, such as solar aluminum frame, solar junction box, aluminum materials windows, and other metal component parts. JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. was founded in 2006 and is based in Shangrao, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JKS) is up 12.9% at $33.29 after reporting better-than-expected earnings and a strong forecast. Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN) is up 2.2% at $29.41 on good results. InterCloud Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ICLD) is up 48.5% at $14.05 following last Friday’s even bigger run-up in the shares.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  It is not often that a secondary stock offering sends a company�� shares higher, but we are seeing that very phenomenon Friday morning. Chinese solar PV maker JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: JKS) and stock image company Shutterstock Inc. (NASDAQ: SSTK) both priced secondary offerings this morning and shares in both companies have risen sharply.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  On the other hand, if you were looking to buy stocks, Monday turned out to be a great time to do so. For instance, in the solar arena, JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS  ) and Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL  ) plunged Monday on feras of the impact of geopolitical tension on the solar business, even though Jinko had reported reasonably strong results earlier that day. Yet Monday, Trina and Jinko soared, with Trina's positive report confirming the health of the solar industry.

5 Best Solar Stocks For 2014: Hanwha SolarOne Co. Ltd.(HSOL)

Hanwha Solarone Co., Ltd., an investment holding company, engages in the manufacture and sale of silicon ingots, silicon wafers, and PV cells and modules. The company also offers mono crystalline and multi crystalline silicon cells; and provides PV module processing services. It sells its products to solar power system integrators and distributors primarily in Germany, Italy, Australia, the United States, the Czech Republic, Spain, and China. The company was formerly known as Solarfun Power Holdings Co., Ltd. and changed its name to Hanwha SolarOne Co., Ltd. in December 2010. Hanwha Solarone Co., Ltd. was founded in 2004 and is based in Qidong, the People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Stocks on the move: Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is up 31.5% at $5.13 on the announcement that Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) will acquire the Finnish firm�� mobile phone business for $7.2 billion. Chinese solar energy stocks are getting a boost again today, with Hanwha SolarOne Co. (NASDAQ: HSOL) up more than 15.9% and ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL) up 14.9%.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  News and notes
  Hanwha SolarOne (NASDAQ: HSOL  ) announced another $100 million in financing this week, this time a term loan from the Export-Import Bank of Korea. �

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: Hanwha SolarOne Co. (NASDAQ: HSOL) is down 13.9% at $4.36. D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI) is up 4.7% at $18.91 on good earnings boosted by land sales.

5 Best Solar Stocks For 2014: LDK Solar Co. Ltd.(LDK)

LDK Solar Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and marketing of photovoltaic (PV) products; and development of power plant projects. It offers solar-grade and semiconductor-grade polysilicon; and multicrystalline and monocrystalline solar wafers to the manufacturers of solar cells and solar modules. The company also provides wafer processing services to monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar cell and module manufacturers; and sells silicon materials, such as ingots and polysilicon scraps. In addition, it engages in the production and sale of solar cells and modules to developers, distributors, and system integrators; and design and development of solar power projects in Europe, the United States, and China, as well as provides engineering, procurement, and construction services. LDK Solar Co., Ltd. operates in Europe, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Xinyu City, t he People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Travis Hoium]

  Who wins?
  It's important to remember that the only change from two months ago is that Chinese panels will have a higher price. So, companies such as LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK  ) , who were trying to compete on price alone, will likely be left in the dust. Investors should focus on higher-quality manufacturers like Yingli Green Energy, Trina Solar, and Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ  ) as potential winners from the negotiated solar deal.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Big Earnings Movers: Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) is up 8.7% at $88.05 following positive results and a raised outlook. Barnes & Noble Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is down 6% at $15.45 as the bookseller watches its revenue slide. JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) is down 10.3% at $XX on a mixed earnings report and LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) is flat at $1.60.

5 Best Solar Stocks For 2014: Real Goods Solar Inc.(RSOL)

Real Goods Solar, Inc. operates as a residential and commercial solar energy integrator primarily in California and Colorado. The company provides engineering, procurement, and construction services. It offers various turnkey solar energy services, including design, procurement, permitting, build-out, grid connection, financing referrals, and warranty and customer satisfaction services. The company installs residential and small commercial systems that range between 3 kilowatts and 1 megawatt output. It also engages in the retail sale of renewable energy products. The company was founded in 1978 and is based in Louisville, Colorado.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  There's no denying that LDK Solar Co., Ltd (NYSE:LDK) has been a notable laggard this year compared to performances from First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) and Real Goods Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:RSOL). RSOL is up nearly 180% year-to-date, with a decent chunk of that gain unfurling in just the last couple of months. FSLR is up 25% for the year so far, though that more modest gain would have been much bigger had it not been for February's 24% plunge. Meanwhile, LDK shares are down 22% year-to-date, and have barely even blipped despite the fact that solar energy has become all the rage again in recent months.

• [By John Udovich]

  Small cap solar stock Andalay Solar Inc (OTCMKTS: WEST) has largely cratered for investors�verses solar stock peers Real Goods Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: RSOL) and SolarCity Corp (NASDAQ: SCTY), but is the company finally turning itself around after a failed deal to be acquired?