Our Research


August 7, 2023

GLJ Solar Weekly – Fireside Chat w/ Head of Sales for Large Global Inverter Player & Our Take on the Sudden Departure of Sunrun’s Chief Accounting Officer Following Earnings

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Price Tracker. Applying a modified approach, we detail PV pricing data by substrate (Ex. 7-8), segmented by Chinese and global prices, tracked each Wednesday by EnergyTrend, PVInsights, and PVInfolink, respectively. Last week, price changes in…

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August 2, 2023

GLJ Macro Weekly – Have You Heard of the Fed’s ‘Other Credit Extensions’ (“OCE”) Emergency Lending Facility & is It Possible the Repayment of OCE Loans this Year Will Create “Chaos” in US Stock Market(s)?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

In this Note, We Discuss What Could Prove to be a Mar. 2020-Like Black Swan in 3Q23/4Q23. Is there a black swan coming this year that’s currently flying under the radar? In this note, we…

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July 27, 2023

Is Sunnova Copying the Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) Business Model of Borrowing Short at a Higher Rate than it’s Lending Long, Meaning “Catastrophe” is Only a Matter of Time?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

The Fundamental Question Sunnova Investors Must Ask the Company/Themselves is Simple: “Why Does it Appear Sunnova is Copying the Failed Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) Business Model”. While we get into NOVA’s dismal results in the…

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July 26, 2023

GLJ Macro Weekly – 20-City Case Shiller Home Price Index Shows 3rd Consecutive Year-over-Year Price Drop & Homebuyer DTI Ratios Surge; is “Housing Bubble 2.0” at Risk of Popping

By Gordon L. Johnson II

So, How’s the Housing Market Shaping Up? In this note, we look at: (a) the recent Case-Shiller National Home Price Index data reported yesterday, as well as (b) US homebuyer debt-to-income ratios (“DTIs”) and downpayment…

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July 20, 2023

Q2 Results Show Tesla is Simply a “Car Company” Trading at 70x Earnings when Other “Car Companies” Trade at 6x-8x Earnings

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Were Tesla’s “Other Income” Line Flat QoQ, EPS Would have Missed by “a Mile” (i.e., the beat came, entirely, from a one-time item). In 2021-22, TSLA benefitted from both an automotive parts shortage and automobile…

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July 18, 2023

2Q23 Earnings Preview: “Big Trouble in Little China” – Is the Buyside Missing 2H23 Problems in the World’s Largest Solar Market?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Is 2H23E Setting Up as Among the Best Opportunities in Years to Short Solar Stocks (and Particularly the “Parts Makers”)? In the analysis that follows, we attempt to address the question posed above, as well…

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July 17, 2023

2Q23 Earnings Preview – We Expect Largely Inline Q2 Results, But Does the Auto Supply Chain “Freeing Up” Mean Tesla’s Margins Are Structurally (a lot) Lower Than Consensus is Currently Modeling?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

The Extent of the Q2 Price Cut will Determine Tesla’s Fate Regarding a 2Q23 “Modest” Miss and/or “Huge” Miss. In this note we detail while we expect TSLA’s 2Q23E revs/EPS to come in at $24.4bn/$0.80…

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July 11, 2023

U.S. Steel Q2 Earnings Preview – Is “Big Trouble in Little China” Coming Home to Roost in the U.S.?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

We Expect U.S. Steel to Post a (very) Modest Miss in Q2, Followed by a More Substantial Miss in 2H23. In the analysis that follows, we detail why we believe X’s Q2 numbers will be…

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July 7, 2023

GLJ Macro Weekly – “Mr. Market” is Telling Us: Houston, We Have a “Liquidity” Problem

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Update on Global Liquidity from the Ten Central Banks we Track as well as a Steel Industry “Check-Up”. In this note, we look at the current liquidity situation at the world’s largest ten Central Banks…

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July 6, 2023

GLJ Solar Weekly – California Solar Initiative Apr/May Data Dump Shows Collapse in Battery Installs/Attach Rates & Sharp Fall in Solar Installs; Are Solar Bulls Underestimating the Negative Effects from NEM 3.0 & Collapse in Nat. Gas Prices

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Price Tracker. Applying a modified approach, we detail PV pricing data by substrate (Ex. 14-15), segmented by Chinese and global prices, tracked each Wednesday by EnergyTrend, PVInsights, and PVInfolink, respectively. Last week, price changes in China…

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June 30, 2023

SolarEdge’s “Milk” is Souring… But it Hasn’t Yet Gone Fully Bad (i.e., We Believe Cons. has Set the 2Q23E Hurdle Low, After Which Things Become Much More Difficult)

By Gordon L. Johnson II

SolarEdge is Still Seen as Being in the Driver’s Seat as it Relates to the Global Solar Inverter Arms Race, a Thesis We Think Will Change (to the Downside) in 2H23. In this note, we…

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June 30, 2023

Conn. Utility Eversource Cuts Electricity Prices -43% Effective 7/1 as SoCal Edison/PG&E See their Nat Gas Costs Fall -74%/-63% 2H22-to-6/28; Are the Risks to RUN’s/NOVA’s/SPWR’s “Subscriber Values” Grossly Misunderstood?

By Gordon L. Johnson II

We See Outsized Risk to the “Cockamamie” 20yr DCF Calculations, Known to Many as “Net Subscriber Value”, Sunrun, Sunnova, & Sunpower (as well as our Sell-Side Peers) Use to Justify Their Valuations. First off, why…

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June 22, 2023

After Updating Our Bottom-Up Daqo Model to Reflect the -66% YTD Drop in Poly-Si Prices, We Believe Consensus has Some “Explaining” to Do; Our 2023E Yr-End PT Drops to $19.66/shr

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Consensus Seems to Be Asleep at the Wheel w/ Respect to Daqo’s 2023E EPS Estimate. Despite the fact that mono poly-Si prices are down -76.7% YoY as of 6/21/23 (Ex. 1), the Consensus 2023E EPS…

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June 16, 2023

Fireside Chat 2.0 with U.S. Steel Distribution Bellwether Sheds Light on What to Expect Over the Coming Months

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Fireside Chat with Steel Industry Veteran Provides Insights into what to Expect Looking Forward. In light of the forward June U.S. spot HRC contracted price falling -1.4% over the past month (Ex. 1), Chinese spot HRC…

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June 16, 2023

Fireside Chat 2.0 with U.S. Steel Distribution Bellwether Sheds Light on What to Expect Over the Coming Months

By Gordon L. Johnson II

Fireside Chat with Steel Industry Veteran Provides Insights into what to Expect Looking Forward. In light of the forward June U.S. spot HRC contracted price falling -1.4% over the past month (Ex. 1), Chinese spot HRC…

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