First Solar (FSLR -1.5%) slips as Roth Capital downgrades shares to Neutral from Buy with a $56 price target, saying progress on increasing module efficiency may not happen quickly enough to enable a competitive cost structure over the medium-term.

Roth's Philip Shen sees First Solar having a clear path to the 460W module targeted for lead line production in H2 2020, but the path to a 500W module with ~20% efficiency appears to be less certain, and the analyst says hopes to see a more clear execution plan.

"We expect the narrative to shift in the coming quarters with a greater focus on bookings and efficiency gains as Section 201 protection winds down," Shen writes.

At the same time, Roth reiterates Buy rating and raises price targets for SolarEdge (SEDG +3.8%), Enphase Energy (ENPH +3.7%) and Sunnova (NOVA +5.0%).

FSLR's average Wall Street analyst rating is Bullish, while its Seeking Alpha Authors' Rating is Neutral.

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First Solar downgraded at Roth on efficiency progress concerns - Seeking Alpha