Why Solar Energy Stocks Skyrocketed Today

Shares of solar energy stocks jumped across the board on Monday, which happens to be a day before the U.S. presidential election. Of course, election speculation played a role in the move, but it's also not the only reason it happened, which I'll get to.

Shares of Sunnova Energy (NYSE: NOVA) jumped as much as 15% today, Array Technologies (NASDAQ: ARRY) was up 15.4%, and Sunrun (NASDAQ: RUN) popped 10.7%. The stocks were up 11.3%, 14.2%, and 8.6% respectively at 3 p.m. ET.

Election speculation continues

The final hours before the election continue to see investors position themselves for different outcomes. A tightening of the race has caused some investors to think solar energy stocks could be big winners under a Harris administration.

But before buying that narrative, consider that most solar stocks struggled over the past four years, with some companies going bankrupt. Subsidies and incentives from one side of the aisle or the other can be great for speculation, but they often have the opposite effect of what investors think in these short-term trades.

A case in point is coal stocks performing terribly between 2016 and 2020, and solar energy stocks like Sunnova, Array, and Sunrun all underperforming the market since the last election.

Tech news that may matter

What investors should pay more attention to is recent news that Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) had their nuclear energy plans delayed by regulators in the past few days. Meta was hoping to build an artificial intelligence (AI) data center next to a nuclear plant, but the site is getting pushback, including because of the sighting of rare bees.

Amazon's plan to buy power from a nuclear power plant was rejected because it would have put more of a burden on other customers.

Not only are nuclear power plants difficult and time-consuming to build, but the data center demand looks like it's becoming a problem for the traditional grid. One quick answer could be solar energy, which is intermittent but abundant if sited in the right location. A combination of solar and energy storage could be a more viable solution, and that has perked up solar stocks.

Ironically, Sunnova and Sunrun are rooftop solar companies, but it was reported last week that Sunrun is in talks to build power plants for AI data centers. Sunnova could also do the same for rooftop projects, in particular.

Of these three, the biggest beneficiary could be Array Technologies, who makes mounts for large utility-scale projects, which would be well suited for data centers.

The volatile road ahead

As mentioned, the election isn't a good reason to buy or sell stocks, because the outcome can often be the opposite of what you might think. But the news around tech's needs for energy will be something to watch, because even if nuclear energy does take off, it'll be at least 2030 before it's a meaningful part of the energy picture. Until then, solar energy may be a better answer for growing energy needs, and that may be a durable tailwind behind solar energy stocks.

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John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Travis Hoium has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.