By Emily Dattilo

First Solar stock is well-placed to weather uncertainty under a Trump administration for the renewable-energy sector, Seaport's Tom Curran argued.

The analyst recommended betting on utility-scale solar and storage industries in the coming year, as the sector faces several headwinds including U.S. "climate policy that is about to swing from broadly stimulative to selectively constrictive" after President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Monday. He also flagged "higher for even longer" interest rates, as the Federal Reserve responds to continued sticky inflation.

As such, Curran upgraded shares of the solar technology company to Buy from Neutral, setting a price target of $274 and calling it a top pick. First Solar stock gained 1.8% to $190.10 in premarket trading.

"In such a fluid environment, we want to go with one of the sector's few established blue chips and a company that, in our view, has the best risk-reward profile specific to policy," he said.

First Solar's growing U.S. manufacturing presence is a positive as the market braces for an expected increase in tariffs and duties on imports under Trump, the analyst wrote. Meantime, changes to the Inflation Reduction Act could encourage customers to place orders earlier, he added.

Write to Emily Dattilo at emily.dattilo@dowjones.com

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January 16, 2025 08:39 ET (13:39 GMT)

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