Even though the market seems to have a less-than-sunny view of solar stocks just now, one analyst recently upped his price target on sector mainstay (NASDAQ: SPWR). SunPower has an upside potential of more than 30% at the targeted price. Let's take a quick look at the state of the company and its industry to gauge whether the analyst's view is realistic.

In mid-February UBS analyst Jon Windham added $0.25 per share to his fair value assessment of SunPower, for a new level of $4.25. Interestingly, despite the notable gap between the current share price and Windham's new target, the analyst reiterated his neutral recommendation on the solar stock.

That caution might be revealing; at the minimum, it's understandable. The relatively high interest rates necessitated by inflation have yet to come down, despite Federal Reserve officials' comments that they might be imminent. The solar energy sector depends on cheap financing, as solar projects tend to be costly. Those persistently lofty rates were a major factor in solar companies' tough 2023, and they remain a challenge today.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com