Our Research


February 21, 2023

Things Get Worse for Tesla in China; it’s Looking Like China Will Prove a “Big” Problem for Tesla in 1Q23E

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Tesla Posts “Scary” Chinese Numbers. TSLA reported China sales for the week of Feb. 13-Feb. 19, and the numbers were disappointing yet again. That is, we note: (a) TSLA’s domestic China sales were down -15.1%…

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February 17, 2023

NHTSA Recalls Tesla’s FSD Beta “Full Self Driving” System – Our Take on this Very Important Development

By Gordon L. Johnson II

How’d It All Begin? So… the entire full-self-drive mistruth/deception, in our view, began with the credibly alleged fraudulent (according to Bloomberg – link) “Paint it Black” video (link) from 2016, which remains on TSLA’s website….

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February 14, 2023

“Big Trouble in Little China” – TSLA Reports Weekly China Deliveries for the Feb. 6th-to-Feb.12th Period

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Were TSLA’s Jan. 5th 13.4%-to-17.0% China Price Cuts Simply Not Enough? In short, as detailed in Ex. 1 below, we remind our readers that in TSLA’s most important/profitable market of China, on Jan. 5th, 2023,…

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February 13, 2023

What if We Told You We Had a “Magic Elixir” That Allows You to Predict the S&P 500 w/ 84.5% Accuracy?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

What is the Best Measure of Liquidity, and is the Recent “Reckless” Infusion of Liquidity by the Fed the Real Reason Stocks Have Surged Since 2009? In short, looking at the .OLIQ G INDEX on…

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February 9, 2023

An Unexpected “Global Steel Price Reset” Appears Fated; We Move X to SELL from BUY; Yr-End ’23 PT Moves to $13.85 from $42.75 Prior

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Despite a Strong Reaction in the Stock the Day it Reported Q4 Earnings (i.e., Feb. 3rd), with Big River (i.e., X’s Mini-Mill) Reporting Negative EBIT in Q4, as Well as Negative EBIT in X’s USSE…

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February 5, 2023

GLJ Global Macro Weekly – Were Hedge Funds Caught on the Wrong Side of J. Powell and is the Violent Upside Seen YTD Set to Reverse Just as Fast as it Emerged?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

There has been an Earthquake at Quant Funds that Has Sent Meme Stocks (TSLA + AMC + COIN + GME + BBBY + etc.) Soaring; is it Sustainable? The bears have been decimated this year,…

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January 31, 2023

Solar Snippet – Is NEM 2.0 “Pull-In” Going to Benefit 4Q22 Results & 1Q23E Guide, & Does SolarEdge Have More Resi Inverters Available?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Sell-Side Non-Deal Roadshow Last Week Points to NEM 2.0 Pull-In; Should the “Solar Bears” be Worried? In short, last week, we received a number of requests from institutional solar investors no our opinions around the…

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January 31, 2023

Tesla’s Weekly China Sales Report Card is Out – Looks Like E. Musk’s Car Company Will Have to Cut Prices (Again) to Move Metal in China

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Despite Comments to the Contrary from E. Musk on TSLA’s Q4 Earnings Call, Stagnant Lead-Times in China, Despite Sharp Price Cuts, Suggest Tesla Has a Demand Problem in its Largest Market. By way of background,…

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January 30, 2023

GLJ Global Macro Weekly – Is Core Inflation Re-Accelerating, Is Spending on Goods (Following Pandemic Binge) Fizzling Out, and Is there An Easy Explanation for the Recent Surge in “Meme” Stocks?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

While Many Claim the “Inflation Monster” has Been Slayed, with December Services Inflation Spiking and Core PCE Re-Accelerating (Balanced, Modestly, by Goods Inflation Plunging) We Foresee a More Hawkish Powell Later this Week. As is…

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January 25, 2023

Solar Pricing Update (Week of 1/25/23) – Poly-Si + Wafer + Cell Prices Muted Due to CNY; Module Prices, However, Fall

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Commentary from 1/25/23 – PVInsights. “Depressed international solar modules, muted China silicon materials during Lunar New Year holiday January 25, 2023. Polysilicon was roughly flat on Wednesday as the market in China stayed mute amid…

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January 25, 2023

Q4 Preview – TSLA’s 1Q23E Guidance is the Real “Main Attraction” Given the Company’s Jan. 2023 Midnight Massacre Price Cuts

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Why Do We Say the 1Q23 Guide is What Matters? When looking at the period from 4Q22-to-1Q23, the avg. price decline, thus far, is: (a) -13.3% for the USA, (b) -10.5% for Europe, and (c)…

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January 23, 2023

Nov. California Solar Initiative Insights Into U.S. Battery Storage Trends + 2022 U.S. Solar Imports/Installs Update + State of China Solar Demand

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Solar Weekly Update – Focus on Nov. Battery Storage Data/China Demand Price Tracker. Applying a modified approach, we detail PV pricing data by substrate (Ex. 3-4), segmented by Chinese and global prices, tracked each Wednesday…

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January 23, 2023

Following a Full Model Revamp, CSIQ’s Forward Earnings Appear Set to Be Rerated Lower for New Environment; PT Lower to $12.22/shr

By Gordon L. Johnson II

2022 Was a Good Year for Canadian Solar; 2023E Appears Set to be the Exact Opposite. In its most recent quarter, CSIQ reported rev/GAAP-EPS of $1.93B/$1.12 vs. Cons’ ests. of $1.86B/$0.30 (a material beat, at…

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January 18, 2023

Graphite Electrode Pricing Update (Week of 1/18/23) – Price Declines Accelerate Week-Over-Week, with 600mm UHP Prices Down -2.55%

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Graphite Electrode Prices Give Back (Even More) of the Recent Gains. Below, in Ex. 1, we provide 2023 (i.e., WoW, MoM, YoY, and YTD) pricing gyrations for a number of different graphite electrode substrates in…

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January 18, 2023

Solar Pricing Update (Week of 1/18/23) – Poly-Si + Wafer + Cell Prices Rebound on Wafer Capacity Cuts; Module Prices, However, Miss the Rally

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Commentary from 1/18/23 – PVInsights. “Bullish wafer prices through production cuts lead cell and polysilicon upwards January 18, 2023. Polysilicon prices in China turned higher on Wednesday as strengthening wafer pricing buoyed sentiment, while Chinese…

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