Solar Stocks Surge After Energy Bill Gets Backing From Sen. Manchin

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Solar stocks were surging Thursday after Sen. Joe Manchin said he supported a spending package that includes funding for energy and climate programs.

They also were getting a lift from

Sunnova Energy

(ticker: NOVA), which saw its stock soar more than 10% after the company reported better-than-expected second-quarter revenue.

First Solar

(FSLR) rose 7.2% early Thursday,

SunRun

jumped 7.5%,

SunPower

(SPWR) was up 8.2% and

Enphase Energy

(ENPH) gained 3.7%. Enphase, the solar equipment maker, on Tuesday posted beats on second-quarter earnings and revenue, and CEO Badri Kothandaraman said that third-quarter demand was “very robust and exceeds the higher end of our guidance range.”

The

Invesco Solar ETF
(TAN) was rising 4.6%.

Manchin (D., W.Va.) had been a holdout among Democrats on a laundry list of social, climate and other policies.

But in a surprise turnaround, Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Wednesday an agreement on a reconciliation bill that would invest $370 billion in clean energy and climate change programs as part of a larger package that expands health insurance subsidies and reforms prescription drug pricing.

Manchin had sent solar stocks tumbling earlier this month after he said he wouldn’t be supporting an economic package that increased funding for climate change provisions.

Write to Joe Woelfel at [email protected]