Earnings season is in full swing for U.S. equities, with corporate profits sharing the spotlight with election coverage.
Both General Motors GM and Tesla TSLA provided bullish guidance for electric vehicle demand strength and profitability, boosting green stocks generally.
Meanwhile, a slew of key announcements in the coming days should provide investors with a clearer insight into the future of renewable energy industries.
First Solar FSLR will report results for the third quarter on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. EST with consensus forecasts for the company to meet guidance at $3.10 per share versus $2.50 during the same period last year.
First Solar’s stock has risen by almost 20% for the year, but, like the entire solar sector, its trading has been highly correlated to election expectations. Share prices for the company are now down sharply from highs reached over the summer following the ascendance of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential candidate.
Among the most anticipated upcoming announcements is Constellation Energy CEG , scheduled to report third quarter results on Monday at 10 a.m. EST.
Constellation is expected to affirm earlier guidance for the year. But the primary focus for investors will be discussion of nuclear energy demand going forward. A new deal with Microsoft to restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania garnered headlines in September as a key point of discussion for management, while updates on the South Texas Project Electric Generating Station nuclear plant in Texas acquired last year are also expected to figure prominently.
Despite uncertainties facing impact investors over the election and the potential fallout for clean energy demand, the market mood appears to remain positive.
In a note issued Friday, UBS analyst Shneur Gershuni reiterated support for the renewable energy sector. Gershuni said media narratives focused on investors abandoning renewables in favor of fossil fuels bets are a distraction. His team remains bullish on clean energy because of what they view as “an unrelenting demand shock for power driven by AI Data Centers and Hyperscaler desire for Low Carbon sources.”
Exchange-traded fund (ETF) data last week suggests that investors share this bullish sentiment, with ESG/Renewable equity ETFs realizing net inflows of over $200 million. According to Bloomberg data, this brings total capital inflows to more than $2.5 billion for the year-to-date as allocator commitment continues to rebound from the first half of last year.
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