< The 2014 All-America Research TeamBrian LeeGoldman, Sachs & Co.First-place appearances: 0
Total appearances: 1
Team debut: 2014Brian Lee makes his first appearance on this roster, in second place. The Goldman, Sachs & Co. analyst has positive expectations for U.S. solar energy companies, citing more competitive costs and the emergence of leasing and other new sales models that he forecasts will drive annual volume growth of 15 to 20 percent through the next several years. In addition, Lee sees potential for higher valuation multiples as companies pursue own-and-operate business models, such as yieldcos. He further projects that access to lower-cost capital, via solar asset-backed securities and yieldco investment vehicles, will “gain increasing momentum, thus providing more sustainable growth and margin potential for the group over the longer term.” The analyst’s favorite name is SolarCity Corp. because the San Mateo, California–based provider is levered to rooftop solar, which Lee notes has less than 1 percent penetration in the U.S., making it the highest-growth and highest-margin vertical space within the solar energy landscape. “Driven by increasing scale and lower costs,” he explains, “we see SolarCity’s business model as one of the more transformative trends across the sector, given its value proposition of cheaper, renewable energy as well as consumer optionality in generating power rather than simply sourcing it.”