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Can Tesla ‘Cousin’ SolarCity Hold Above Key Level Before Earnings?

After testing support at a key level in Tuesday’s session, SolarCity ( SCTY ) is trying to hold above that mark in the stock market today , ahead of its quarterly report next Monday. The stock rose nearly 5% Wednesday morning on a bullish analyst rating, but it reversed lower amid a market sell-off. SolarCity is now mostly unchanged, with the stock trading in quick turnover. A gain would end a four-session slide, with shares bouncing back from a test of support at their 50-day line. The stock is trading more than 50% below its 52-week high, as the shares have been scorched in recent months by Nevada’s new net-metering rules. Guggenheim initiated coverage on the solar panel installer with a buy rating and a price target of 38. On Monday, Credit Suisse cut its price target on SolarCity from 89 to 62 while maintaining its outperform rating. When it reports after the close next Monday, SolarCity is expected to report a 61% revenue rise, while its per-share loss widens to $2.34 a share from $1.52 a share last year. SolarCity’s “cousin company” Tesla Motors ( TSLA ) — which is helmed by SolarCity Chairman Elon Musk — reports after the close tonight, Wednesday evening. Tesla shares are down nearly 2% intraday, falling just below their 50-day line but still just above their 200-day. Tesla is projected to show a widened bottom-line loss on sales growth of 45% as the automaker ramps up Model X production. Tesla’s Powerwall battery storage units are now beginning residential installations. SolarCity, whose founders are Musk’s cousins, is incorporating the Tesla batteries into its own energy storage system. Meanwhile, SolarCity rival Sunrun ( RUN ) reports earnings next Thursday. The August 2015 IPO’s sales are projected to come in at $83.4 million, down 16% from Q4, while its loss deepens from last quarter to 53 cents a share. Sunrun is up nearly 60% from its February low, but it is still nearly 50% below its all-time high reached in December. Sunrun rose fractionally Wednesday intraday. Elsewhere in the solar panel space, Solaredge ( SEDG ) fell 4.5%, and First Solar ( FSLR ) retreated by 1.7%. First Solar has lost 16% in five days since reporting weaker-than-expected revenue last week.

Priceline Tops Q1 Views, But Stock Collapses On Guidance Miss

Priceline ( PCLN ) stock tanked early Wednesday after the No. 1 online travel agency reported Q1 metrics that topped Wall Street estimates but offered current-quarter guidance that missed the consensus and would mark a year-over-year drop in net income. In morning trading in the stock market today , Priceline shares were down nearly 11% after the firm reported its earnings before the open. Shares of top rival Expedia ( EXPE ) were down nearly 2% Wednesday morning. Priceline reported $10.54 earnings per share minus items on $2.15 billion in sales and $676 million earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). On a year-over-year basis, the three measures rose a respective 30%, 17% and 27%. The consensus of 30 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters modeled $2.12 billion in sales, $9.65 EPS minus items and $620.6 million EBITDA. Room-night stays rose 31% vs. the year-earlier quarter, trailing Expedia’s Q1 growth of 37%. Gross bookings of $16.65 billion grew 21% year over year vs. 32% growth at Expedia. Rental car days grew 11%, but airline tickets fell 7%, Priceline said. “The Priceline Group delivered strong top-line growth and attractive margins in the first quarter,” Chairman and interim CEO Jeffery Boyd said in a statement. “Growth in room-night reservations of 31% reflects continued solid execution in the market for global travel.” Boyd took over last week when Priceline’s board forced the sudden resignation of CEO Darren Huston after an internal investigation into an inappropriate relationship with an employee. Priceline, however, provided current-quarter guidance that lagged views, and Priceline expects EPS and EBITDA to fall on a year-over-year basis — a first for its EPS. Priceline also guided to growth of 15%-22% for room-night stays and 11%-18% for gross bookings vs. the year-earlier quarter, slowing sequentially. For Q2, Priceline sees $11.60-$12.50 EPS ex items and $740 million to $795 million EBITDA, down 3% and 5%, respectively, at the midpoints. The firm guided to 7%-14% year-over-year sales growth (about $2.4 billion to $2.6 billion). The consensus modeled $2.66 billion in sales, $14.98 EPS ex items and $948.1 million EBITDA. Last week Expedia reported strong first-quarter results, including booming gross bookings and room-night stays, sending its stock up 8% the following day. But Expedia did not provide Q2 guidance.

SigFox ‘Internet of Things’ Plan Challenges AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile

Internet-of-Things (IoT) startup SigFox says it will expand its wireless network using unlicensed frequencies to 100 U.S. cities, posing a challenge to AT&T ( T ), Verizon Communications ( VZ ) and T-Mobile ( TMUS ). The IoT refers to wireless technology that connects industrial, medical, automotive and consumer devices to the Internet. Wireless networks operated by Verizon and AT&T are competing with non-cellular technologies — mainly Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and ZigBee — in IoT deployment. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile have been counting on the IoT, also called machine-to-machine communications (M2M), as a growth driver amid fierce price competition in wireless data services. Both AT&T and Verizon have been focused on Web-connected cars, as well as “smart cities” that have remote monitoring of street lights, utility meters and road conditions. France-based SigFox has been targeting industrial IoT applications. SigFox uses unlicensed, Wi-Fi-type radio frequencies to connect M2M devices. It’s well-funded , having raised more than $150 million from investors, according to TechCrunch. SigFox began testing its technology in Silicon Valley in 2014. According to SigFox, it has 7 million devices connected to its network in 18 countries. “U.S. is a huge growth market for Internet of Things connectivity, especially in smart cities, utilities, shipping and agriculture sectors that require large-scale and cost-effective communication,” said Allen Proithis, president of SigFox North America, in a press release. AT&T and Verizon are pushing the federal government to make high-frequency radio spectrum available for 5G services, which include low-power IoT applications.