Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ:RUN) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $12.81, but opened at $15.49. Sunrun shares last traded at $15.9440, with a volume of 16,164,102 shares traded.

Key Stories Impacting Sunrun

Here are the key news stories impacting Sunrun this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Sunrun announced a partnership with Tesla and Renew Home to deliver more than 16 gigawatts of flexible energy capacity to utilities and data centers, which investors view as a potentially large new revenue channel and a sign of stronger future demand. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports highlighted a sharp surge in RUN shares after the deal was announced, with heavy trading volume and unusual call-option activity suggesting traders are betting on more upside. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Sunrun was also mentioned in broader market coverage as one of several stocks moving on Wednesday, but that piece did not add much company-specific information beyond the recent rally. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: After the sharp rally, later coverage noted RUN gave back some gains and closed lower in the latest session, with one article also pointing to earnings estimate revisions that do not fully support additional near-term strength. Article Title

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Freedom Capital cut Sunrun from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Sunrun from $24.00 to $19.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Sunrun from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Sunrun from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Sunrun from $22.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sunrun currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.98.

Sunrun Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.38 and a beta of 2.32. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.44, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.67. Sunrun had a return on equity of 14.06% and a net margin of 17.88%.The business had revenue of $722.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $688.50 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.20 EPS. Sunrun’s revenue for the quarter was up 43.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Sunrun Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Sunrun

In related news, CFO Danny Abajian sold 132,953 shares of Sunrun stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.25, for a total value of $1,761,627.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 432,157 shares in the company, valued at $5,726,080.25. The trade was a 23.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Mary Powell sold 193,002 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.25, for a total transaction of $2,557,276.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 934,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,379,236.50. This trade represents a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 694,816 shares of company stock worth $9,366,473 over the last 90 days. 3.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RUN. Contour Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Sunrun during the fourth quarter valued at $98,010,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Sunrun during the fourth quarter valued at $62,169,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Sunrun in the third quarter worth $40,193,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Sunrun in the third quarter worth $21,427,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Sunrun by 26.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,868,199 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $107,975,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231,628 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.69% of the company’s stock.

About Sunrun

Sunrun, Inc (NASDAQ: RUN) is a leading provider of residential solar energy systems in the United States. The company designs, installs and maintains rooftop solar panels and battery storage solutions for homeowners under flexible financing arrangements. Customers can choose from leasing, power purchase agreements or solar ownership models, all of which are supported by Sunrun’s network of installation partners and service technicians. Sunrun also offers integrated home energy management services, including its Brightbox battery storage product, which enables customers to store solar energy for use during peak hours or power outages.

Founded in 2007 by Lynn Jurich, Ed Fenster and Nat Kreamer, Sunrun is headquartered in San Francisco, California.