Why SunPower and Other Alternative Energy Stocks Dropped This Week

Alternative energy stocks had a rough week in the stock market. That included solar company SunPower (NASDAQ: SPWR) as well as hydrogen fuel cell companies Plug Power (NASDAQ: PLUG) and Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE). Early in the final trading day of the week, these stocks are down between about 6% and 8% from last Friday's close, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

The macroeconomic environment is weighing on these stocks, and it hasn't just been this week. In the last three months, SunPower shares have dropped 25%, while Plug Power and Bloom Energy have tanked 40% and 31%, respectively. But this week some analysts chimed in, and these names continued to drop.

When SunPower reported its first-quarter results on May 5, CEO Peter Faricy said, "Demand is accelerating as consumers look to solar as a more stable, secure and sustainable energy source." The company's residential solar sales jumped 41% year over year, and it held a record backlog. The company still reported a slight loss of $2 million, however.

Source Fool.com