Some background on why the company may feel compelled to point out the entire value chain effects of their being in business:
First up August 25, 2023:"First Solar, The Poster Child For Solar Subsidies Has Had An Awful Month (FSLR)":
As the Wall Street Journal noted on July 31:
The U.S. Clean-Energy Company That Hit the Subsidies Jackpot
Of all the beneficiaries of the U.S.’s green-energy push, few have hit the jackpot like First Solar. The Arizona-based solar-panel manufacturer expects to receive as much as $710 million this year—nearly 90% of forecast operating profit—from subsidies the U.S. government rolled out a year ago to encourage domestic renewables production. One analyst estimates the incentives could be worth more than $10 billion for the company over the next decade...
And December 27, 2023:
Jackpot: "First Solar to sell up to $700 million in IRA tax credits to Fiserv" (FSLR)
The study via BusinessWire, February 26:
First Solar Releases Study Analyzing Economic Impact of American Manufacturing and Supply Chain Investments
- First Solar forecast to support over 30,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs representing approximately $2.8 bn in labor income in 2026.
- Study reveals that every First Solar job in 2026 is expected to support 7.3 jobs across the nation.
- Solar manufacturer expected to add $5 bn in value and over $10 bn in output to 2026 US economy.
First Solar released what is believed to be the first comprehensive economic analysis of a vertically integrated solar manufacturer’s value chain in the United States.
“We know that our investments, catalyzed by the Inflation Reduction Act, are enabling jobs and bringing prosperity to communities in places such as Lawrence County, Alabama, Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and this report helps quantify the extent of our contribution to the US economy in real terms.”
TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) released what is believed to be the first comprehensive economic analysis of a vertically integrated solar manufacturer’s value chain in the United States. The study, commissioned by First Solar and conducted by the Kathleen Babineaux Blanco Public Policy Center at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, used IMPLAN economic software to analyze First Solar’s actual and forecasted US spending in 2023 and 2026 when the company expects to have 14 gigawatts (GW) of annual nameplate capacity across Alabama, Louisiana, and Ohio.The study found that in 2023:
- First Solar supported an estimated 16,245 direct, indirect, and induced jobs across the country, representing $1.59 billion in annual labor income. With 2,700 employees and almost $490 million in direct labor income, every non-construction First Solar job supported six direct, indirect, and induced jobs across the US economy, and every dollar directly spent on wages created $3.3 in labor income.
- The fully vertically integrated solar manufacturer, which exited 2023 with over 6 GW of annual nameplate capacity, added $2.75 billion in value and $5.32 billion in output to the US economy during the year, including direct, indirect, and induced effects.
- The company’s construction activity in Alabama, Louisiana, and Ohio supported an estimated 5,765 direct, indirect, and induced jobs, representing over $600 million in labor income. Its construction activity is estimated to have added over $900 million in economic value and almost $2 billion in economic output in 2023.
Analyzing First Solar’s forecasted US spending in 2026, the study projects that....
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Finally from Zacks, February 26:
What's in the Cards for First Solar (FSLR) in Q4 Earnings?
...The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FSLR’s fourth-quarter revenues is pegged at $1.31 billion, indicating growth of 30.8% from the year-ago reported figure....*****...The Zacks Consensus Estimate for First Solar’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at $3.19 per share, implying a massive improvement from the prior-year reported loss of 7 cents per share....
....MUCH MORE
As for our opinion? We have the Go-Go's "We got the beat" cued up.
The stock is up 71 cents at $143.60.
