INTRO Here's my semi-annual exercise to see if I remember why I own the stocks I own, and so I can check back and see if their stories have changed. I post in case it helps others too.

Real Goods Solar
RSOL (market cap $0.026B)
Real Good Solar is primarily a solar power installation company operating within a few states that subsidize solar installations, but also has an online catalog for the retail do-it-yourself (DIY) market. Their business is simple and growing. Total revenues have almost doubled from 2008 to 2010, and 2010 was a profitable year. Their debt/equity ratio is high, which may be indicative of the construction industry. The drop in solar cell prices has hurt producers but may benefit installers like Real Goods. Subsidies are an important consideration, and I am not politically knowledgable enough to guess how demand for self-sufficiency and energy efficiency are going to balance against budget deficits.

The stock is trading at about half of book value and about a quarter of sales, both of which may be appropriate for the construction industry, but the revenue growth suggests that Real Goods is in a higher growth market that could warrant a premium if this was a more rational investment climate.

DISCLOSURE LTBH since the mid-2008 IPO. I might buy more if I had sufficient discretionary funds.
(I've also collected links to the other discussion boards and my other stocks over on my blog trimbathcreative.wordpress.com)