5 Best Solar Stocks To Watch Right Now

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of solar installer SolarCity (NASDAQ: SCTY  ) dropped 11% today after the company released first-quarter earnings.

So what: Revenue was up 21% from a year ago to $29.99 million, ahead of Wall Street's $29.1 million estimate. The problem is that the company's net loss was $31 million, or $0.41 per share, and analysts were only expecting a $0.32 loss per share. ��

Now what: It's going to be some time before SolarCity reports a profit so the higher than expected loss isn't a huge surprise. The company still expects to install 250 MW of solar this year and expects lease revenue to be $16 million-$18 million in the second quarter. This is recurring revenue; it's growth in leases we should be worried about. I don't think this is a reason to panic but I'd be cautious getting into SolarCity because operating expenses are growing much faster than revenue or installations right now.

Interested in more info on SolarCity? Add it to your watchlist by clicking here.

Hot Tech Stocks To Watch For 2015: Peabody Energy Corporation(BTU)

Peabody Energy Corporation engages in the mining of coal. It mines, prepares, and sells thermal coal to electric utilities and metallurgical coal to industrial customers. The company owns interests in 30 coal mining operations located in the United States and Australia, as well as owns joint venture interest in a Venezuela mine. It is also involved in marketing, brokering, and trading coal. In addition, the company develops a mine-mouth coal-fueled generating plant; and Btu Conversion projects that are designed to convert coal to natural gas or transportation fuels; and clean coal technologies. As of December 31, 2011, it had 9 billion tons of proven and probable coal reserves. The company was founded in 1883 and is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Justin Loiseau]

  Wall Street wasn't aiming high with this corporation. Sales are down a seasonally adjusted 8.5%, while adjusted EPS plummeted 50% as mining companies continually find themselves between a rock and a hard place. But considering Cliff's newest report and Peabody Energy's (NYSE: BTU  ) earnings win earlier this week, it seems that mining companies aren't out of steam yet. Yesterday's report coincided with a new International Energy Outlook report predicting a 56% uptick in global energy use over the next three decades. Mining companies' share prices have trailed the Dow over the past 12 months, with Peabody down 37% and Cliffs lagging a whopping 78%.

5 Best Solar Stocks To Watch Right Now: First Solar Inc.(FSLR)

First Solar, Inc. manufactures and sells solar modules using a thin-film semiconductor technology. It also designs, constructs, and sells photovoltaic solar power systems. The company?s solar modules employ a thin layer of semiconductor material to convert sunlight into electricity. Its integrated solar power systems activities include the project development; engineering, procurement, and construction services; operating and maintenance services; and project finance. The company sells solar modules to project developers, system integrators, and operators of renewable energy projects; and solar power systems to investor owned utilities, independent power developers and producers, and commercial and industrial companies, as well as other system owners. It operates in the United States, Germany, France, Canada, and internationally. The company was formerly known as First Solar Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to First Solar, Inc. in 2006. First Solar was founded in 1999 a nd is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Stocks turned early morning losses into gains today, as the market continues to digest yesterday’s Fed meeting, and AT&T (T), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), First Solar (FSLR) and�Frontier Communications (FTR) gain.

• [By Sean Williams]

  Powering the S&P 500 higher were shares of solar-panel producer First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR  ) , which rose 6.6% after receiving an upgrade from Goldman Sachs�to "buy" from "hold" with a price target of $64. U.S.-based solar producers like First Solar are starting to realize the advantages of their higher-efficiency panels, with import tariffs being placed on cheaper Chinese solar panels and a combination of oversupply and huge debt levels crushing China-based manufacturers. As long as subsidies remain in place for solar conversion in the U.S., you can expect alternative energies like solar to thrive.

• [By Travis Hoium]

  Money, money, money
  First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR  ) became the latest to offer shares of convertible debt to the market in an effort to raise cash. The company sold 9.45 million new shares at $46 for proceeds of about $427.7 million to the company. �

• [By Doug Ehrman]

  It is not often that positive guidance can drive a stock by nearly 50% in a single day, but remarks made by First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR  ) had precisely that impact. The news bodes well for the industry, and the company is not resting, but aggressively pursuing the add-ons it needs to succeed. After such a big run, you must ask yourself if this is only the beginning or is it rather a blip that will soon be corrected.

5 Best Solar Stocks To Watch Right Now: LDK Solar Co. Ltd.(LDK)

LDK Solar Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and marketing of photovoltaic (PV) products; and development of power plant projects. It offers solar-grade and semiconductor-grade polysilicon; and multicrystalline and monocrystalline solar wafers to the manufacturers of solar cells and solar modules. The company also provides wafer processing services to monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar cell and module manufacturers; and sells silicon materials, such as ingots and polysilicon scraps. In addition, it engages in the production and sale of solar cells and modules to developers, distributors, and system integrators; and design and development of solar power projects in Europe, the United States, and China, as well as provides engineering, procurement, and construction services. LDK Solar Co., Ltd. operates in Europe, the Asia Pacific, and North America. The company was founded in 2005 and is based in Xinyu City, t he People?s Republic of China.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Chinese solar companies are a different story. Many manufacture their own silicon wafers and sell silicon to other makers. Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL), LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) and Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) all manufacture and sell solar ingots, wafers or cells.

5 Best Solar Stocks To Watch Right Now: Canadian Solar Inc.(CSIQ)

Canadian Solar Inc. engages in the design, development, manufacture, and sale of solar power products in Canada and internationally. The company offers solar cell and solar module products that convert sunlight into electricity for various uses. Its products include a range of standard solar modules for use in a range of residential, commercial, and industrial solar power generation systems. The company also designs and produces specialty solar modules and products consisting of customized modules that its customers incorporate into their products, such as solar-powered bus stop lighting; and specialty products, such as portable solar home systems and solar-powered car battery chargers. In addition, it sells solar system kits, a package consisting of solar modules produced by it and third party supplied components, such as inverters, racking system, and other accessories, as well as implements solar power development projects. The company sells its products under the Canad ian Solar brand name. Canadian Solar Inc. offers its standard solar modules through a direct sales force and sales agents primarily to distributors, system integrators, and original equipment manufacturer customers, as well as to solar projects; and specialty solar modules and products to the automotive, telecommunications, and light-emitting diode lighting sectors. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Kitchener, Canada.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ) was also falling, dropping 10.64 percent to $39.01 after the company missed on both top and bottom lines, while guiding lower in its fourth quarter report Wednesday morning.