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Ascent Solar Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ASTI) Looking To Rebound

Ascent Solar Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ASTI) Looking To Rebound
Written by
Alex Carlson
Published on
January 28, 2016
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Shares of Ascent Solar Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ASTI) have been hammered over the past year by short sellers and negative articles on Seeking Alpha. However, the days of being short ASTI are looking to be over and we're expecting a strong rebound on the back of a Schedule 56 contract from the Federal government. This contract enables Federal customers, including all four branches of the U.S. Military, Federal Agencies and others, to easily purchase a range of Ascent Solar products including the MilPak E and EnerPlex products such as the Kickr IV and Kickr II. Its products are now live on the United States Federal Government purchasing website: www.gsaadvantage.gov.The granting of the GSA Schedule 56 contract is the result of a rigorous process. The GSA carefully assesses companies to determine their ability to deliver products and/or services to the Federal Government on a sustained basis. The completion of this process identifies the recipient as a preferred vendor for the Federal Government and one which is authorized to conduct commercial operations directly with Federal Agencies. COO Rafael E. Gutierrez said:

"Pursuant to the Schedule 56 contract announced in December, we are pleased that our products are now available for purchase directly by Federal government employees, both civilian and military. We strongly believe that Ascent Solar and EnerPlex's, Made in the USA, products provide unique value for portable power generation and storage, being both lighter, more rugged, but most importantly more integrated, than other products available."

ASTI is a developer of thin-film photovoltaic modules with substrate materials that are more flexible, versatile and rugged than traditional solar panels. Ascent Solar modules can be directly integrated into consumer products and off-grid applications, as well as aerospace and building integrated applications. EnerPlex is the Company's brand of consumer products and is a division of Ascent Solar. The company has a competitive advantage in the solar products space due its light weight CIGs technology, as opposed to crystalline silicon technology.

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Ascent Solar deals in battery and solar integrated cases for smart phones. Its Wavesol Mobile modules are lightweight and enable easy integration with a number of consumer products. The technology is thus very suitable for consumer electronics & off-grid applications, defense & military and transportation. Its products are designed to generate power anywhere. Most recently the company launched two new product lines and also announced a retail partnership with eBags, an online travel accessory website.Last month, ASTI was issued the second of two US Patents pertaining to the company's solar manufacturing process. Founder and CTO Dr. Joseph Armstrong said:

"In conjunction with US patent 9,209,322 issued earlier this month and pending applications, Ascent secures an avenue of intellectual property rights covering multiple opportunities for improved processes and performance of the Company's energy products. As Ascent pioneers the next generation of CIGS (Copper-Indium-Gallium-di-Selenide), this novel back contact, and the improvements related to our demonstrated ability to manufacture our PV on thinner plastics will lead to significant application opportunities not only in Ascent's aerospace products, but in the Company's EnerPlex consumer products as well."

The biggest problem for ASTI has been significant dilution. This is what's been really weighing on the share price. Just recently the company completed $7 million of a newly designated Series F 7% Convertible Preferred Stock (the "Series F Preferred Stock") to existing investor Redwood Management LLC. The $7 million in new funding is a supplement to the Committed Equity Line ("CEL") financing with Redwood that was secured in November 2015. The Series F Preferred Stock financing will allow the Company to postpone any further drawdowns under the CEL until some later time in 2016.

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The good news is that we think the dilution is over. ASTI should have enough funds to last until the end of this year. In the meantime, if the company can ramp up the sales and marketing of its products, the company could be off to the races. With shares trading near 52 week lows, we think the worst is behind ASTI and the stock is due for a strong short covering bounce. We will be updating Insider Financial with the latest developments on ASTI. Be sure to sign up today and stay on top of ASTI!

Disclosure: We have no position in ASTI either long or short. We have not been compensated for this article.

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