'A giant fusion reactor in the sky': Elon Musk told Joe Rogan that you can power the entire US with 100 x 100 miles of solar — and it’s ‘not hard.’ 3 stocks to bet on that sunny outlook

Host Joe Rogan was intrigued by the idea, asking, “Really? So you could just pick some dead spot, cover that sucker up with solar panels and charge the whole country?”

“Absolutely,” Musk responded. “We need batteries, but yes.”

Musk explained that “it’s not hard” and “very feasible” to power the entire country with solar because the sun is converting more than four million tons of mass to energy every second and requires no maintenance.

“That thing just works. We have a giant fusion reactor in the sky,” he said.

Musk’s perspective not only highlights technological possibilities, but also draws attention to the solar industry’s financial potential. In fact, many companies are already helping people harness the power of the sun.

The U.S. is expected to add a record 32 GW of new solar capacity this year, a 52% increase from 2022, according to a report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie.

Here’s a look at three solar stocks in which Wall Street sees major upside.

Enphase Energy

Enphase (ENPH) is one of the world’s leading suppliers of microinverter-based solar and battery systems.

The stock has had an interesting journey. At the beginning of 2020, shares were trading at around $29 per share. Today, they’re above $90.

While that’s a sizable gain in less than four years, it’s far from smooth sailing. For instance, Enphase shares surged 45% in 2022, but they’ve tumbled more than 60% in 2023.

In the most recent quarter, the company shipped 3,905,239 microinverters and generated $551.1 million of revenue. Earnings came in at 80 cents per share.

Goldman Sachs analyst Brian Lee has a “buy” rating on Enphase and a price target of $158, implying a potential upside of around 70%.

First Solar

First Solar (FSLR) produces solar panels for use in utility-scale solar power plants.

It’s another player in the segment that attracted substantial investor attention in recent years.

In 2022, First Solar shares surged 72%, in stark contrast to the S&P 500’s 19.4% drop during the same period.

Shares have fared less well in 2023, rising only around 2% year to date.

In Q3, the company reported net sales of $801 million, a decrease of $10 million from the second quarter. Management primarily attributed this decline to a reduction in the volume of modules sold.

JPMorgan analyst Mark Strouse recently upgraded First Solar from “neutral” to “overweight.” The analyst has a price target of $220 on the company, implying a potential upside of 44%.

Tesla

Solar is probably not the first word that comes to mind when people think of Musk’s own company, Tesla (TSLA) — its primary business is making electric vehicles.

However, Tesla deserves a spot on this list because it acquired SolarCity in 2016. The company has since integrated solar energy into its broader mission of accelerating the transition to sustainable energy.