For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest rise by 8.3% to 2.08 million shares, about 6.8% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest drop by 7.4% to 17.07 million shares, which represents 28.1% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed an increase of 8% in short interest to 41.34 million shares, about 34.9% of GT’s float.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) showed an increase of 8% in short interest to 16.88 million shares, or about 7.3% of MEMC’s float.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest rise by 4.1% to 9.52 million shares, or 23.9% of the company’s total float.

JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed a drop of 17% in short interest to 2.21 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest fall by 11.9% to 3.03 million shares.

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) showed a rise of 11.2% in short interest to 18.46 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw a short interest decline of 2.3% to 15.79 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a drop of 0.3% in short interest to 7.51 million shares.

In the prior two-week period, Yingli’s short interest rose by 50%. In the most recent two weeks, the very modest rise appears to have drawn a line on just how bad investors think the company’s prospects are. The decline in short interest in LDK is likely due to a lack of fallout from its missed debt repayment. The company may be able to hold on, but that is still questionable. So far the government has not ridden to the rescue for either company, but the thinking may be that it is about to do so.

In the Chinese solar sector we tracked the following short interest changes: JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO), LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK), Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) and Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE). For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest drop by 4.8% to 1.92 million shares, about 6.4% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest rise by 12.2% to 18.43 million shares, which represents 30.6% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed a decrease of 5.6% in short interest, to 38.29 million shares, about 32.3% of GT’s float.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) showed an increase of 1.4% in short interest, to 15.62 million shares, about 6.8% of MEMC’s float.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest jump by 33.1% to 9.15 million shares, 23% of the company’s total float.

JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed a drop of 16.3% in short interest, to 2.66 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest rise by 0.8% to 3.44 million shares.

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) showed a rise of 16.6% in short interest, to 16.6 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw short interest decline of 15.6% to 16.15 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a rise of 50.9% in short interest, to 7.53 million shares.

Short interest is piling up in Yingli as the company looks like the next casualty among the Chinese solar energy players. LDK is teetering on the brink of disaster already, having missed a debt repayment last week. The big thing weighing down both these firms is that it appears that China’s central government will not rescue either of them. Both Trina Solar and JA Solar are better capitalized and could muddle through without government assistance.

The sharp increase in short interest in SunPower could rise even more during these two weeks, if the share price continues to rise. The company is tagging along on the boost in First Solar’s share price and there is no fundamental reason for SunPower stock to keep rising. The company is scheduled to report earnings on May 6.

In the Chinese solar sector we tracked the following short interest changes: JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO), LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK), Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) and Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE).

For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest drop by 6% to 2.02 million shares, which is about 6.6% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest fell by 10.8% to 16.43 million shares, which represents 27.3% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed an increase of 0.8% in short interest to 40.57 million shares, about 34.3% of GT’s float.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) showed a decline of 6.4% in short interest to 15.41 million shares, about 6.7% of MEMC’s float.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest fall by 17.6% to 6.87 million shares, or 17.3% of the company’s total float.

JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed a drop of 6.1% in short interest to 3.18 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest rise by 0.2% to 3.42 million shares.

Short interest in Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) declined 45.3% to 14.24 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw short interest retreat 0.7% to 19.14 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a short interest drop of 11.9% to 4.99 million shares.

Suntech’s bankruptcy filing in the second half of March cooled the ardor of short sellers for the Chinese solar stocks. Instead of piling in, short interest either declined or rose modestly in all the Chinese stocks.

The next report on short interest should reverse what we have seen today. First Solar gave the entire sector a lift yesterday when it boosted its outlook for 2013 and share prices rose dramatically. Anyone caught short yesterday in any solar stock very likely got a bad sunburn. But nothing much has really changed in the sector: module prices are a little more stable but remain low, and government support for solar installations is not growing. Look for the shorts to wade back in.

In the past three years, some 40 China-based firms have announced deals to take the company private and nearly half the deals have been backed by private equity firms. One of the largest is the $3.7 billion deal to take private China’s premier display advertising firm, Focus Media Holding Ltd. (NASDAQ: FMCN). The Carlyle Group L.P. (NASDAQ: CG) is joining with the company’s CEO in the buyout.

Other recent take-private deals include one for Zhongpin Inc. (NASDAQ: HOGS) and another for fertilizer maker Yongye International Inc. (NASDAQ: YONG). Zhongpin’s chairman is taking the company private on his own, and Yongye’s CEO is getting help from a branch of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS). Carlyle Group is also involved in going-private deal worth $688 million for 7 Days Group Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: SNN). Chinese pharmaceutical maker Simcere Pharmaceutical Group (NYSE: SCR) also got an offer from its chairman to take the drug maker private.

One question follows from all this activity: what about China’s struggling solar makers? Now that Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) is no longer a factor, it is interesting to speculate on the possibility of a take-private deal for one of the other solar players. Names that spring immediately to mind are LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL), Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) and ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL).

LDK has issued 12 million newly minted shares to Fulai Investments, giving the firm about 11% of the company. A state-controlled firm owns another 20% of LDK. With a current total market cap of just $141 million, LDK would seem ripe for a take-private deal, especially after shedding one of its largest plants to a provincial government. A government-engineered takeover is more likely here due to the government’s heavy involvement with LDK already.

Trina is one of the companies expected to get some benefit from the downfall of Suntech. The company says it will meet $83.5 million loan payment due July 15. There has been no indication that Trina is being targeted for a take-private deal, but with a market cap of around $260 million the opportunity is there.

Canadian Solar, with a market cap of just $150 million, could be another take-private candidate. The company has a solar installation business, and that promises to help make up for the low prices for wafers and modules. Earlier this year the company got a $40 million loan from Credit Suisse to acquire four projects in Ontario.

ReneSola just received a $51 million loan from a Chinese government-controlled bank, and with a market cap below $125 million, this one is the cheapest of the bunch. But again, the government stake in ReneSola is a negative to taking the company private.

Perhaps the biggest issue with taking a solar company — or any other for that matter — private is how good the chances are that the company can be floated to the public again. No private equity fund is going to bail in to a deal without a clear plan for bailing out. There are not likely to be a lot more buyers for solar makers in another two or three years.

For founders and company executives, taking a Chinese firm private could be a matter of pride. Because these are the very guys who drove the companies to the brink of extinction in the first place, partnering with them seems needlessly risky. Suggestions that firms might consolidate also are unlikely to get much traction in China, again mainly as a matter of pride.

As with so many things in China, the government likely will be responsible for picking winners and losers in the solar business. The government surely could have rescued Suntech, but chose not to. On that basis, the loan to ReneSola is encouraging for that firm.

From here, though, LDK continues to look like the next target, and it will not be a buyout but a government takeover in some form. Trying a merger arbitrage play here, just in case a buyer should pop up, could be a safe bet with some possible upside if the government eventually does ride to the rescue.

In the Chinese solar sector we tracked the following short interest changes: JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO), LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK), Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) and Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE).

For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest rise 0.5% to 2.15 million shares. That is 7.1% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest rose by 3.7% to 18.42 million shares, which represents 30.6% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed an increase of 5.2% in short interest, to 40.25 million shares, or about 33.9% of GT’s float.

Short interest in MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) declined 1.7% to 16.46 million shares, about 7.2% of MEMC’s float.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest fall by 16% to 8.34 million shares, or 21% of the company’s total float.

JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed an increase of 0.7% in short interest, to 3.38 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest decline of 3.9% to 3.41 million shares.

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) had a drop of 8.6% in short interest, to 26.03 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw short interest rise of 1.5% to 19.28 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a drop of 0.2% in short interest, to 5.66 million shares.

The bankruptcy filing by Suntech happened after March 15, so any impact on other solar players has not shown up yet. JA Solar got a reprieve shortly after the Suntech fiasco, and it looks like both Trina and Yingli will make it through the shakeout in Chinese solar stocks. LDK Solar remains the weakest of the current survivors.

Suntech was the largest maker of solar panels in the world, with annual capacity of around 2,400 megawatts of production capability. Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. (NYSE: YGE) has 1,700 megawatts of capacity, and Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) and J.A. Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) are not far behind. Total global capacity was around 59,000 megawatts in 2012, about twice as much as was installed last year. Something had to give.

First it was the higher cost companies in Europe and the United States, but the rapid expansion of Chinese capacity has now caught up with Chinese makers no longer able to get cheap loans from either the central or local governments. The Chinese government decided last year that it would not bail out its solar players, even though it had provided the funds for most of the expansion.

Now the government may cut back on the massive solar projects it has on its drawing board for this year. Bloomberg News reports that an official with the China Renewable Energy Society has said that the government may abolish subsidy programs for some of its largest solar projects and redirect the funds to smaller installations. That doesn’t sound like it would hurt particularly, but the manner in which the subsidies would be paid is the catch.

Under the current rules, developers selected by the government get a subsidy of $0.88 per installed watt provided the project is completed on time. This rapid payment scheme is what is at risk.

Smaller solar installations are awarded a feed-in tariff that pays off over 20 years at an above-market rate for the electricity generated. Staunching the flow of immediate payments will severely sharpen the pain caused by overcapacity.

LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) may be the next casualty. The country’s second largest wafer maker has been scrambling for investors as it continues to post quarterly losses. Gross margins were negative in the third quarter of last year and are likely to be negative for the fourth quarter when the company reports earnings, currently scheduled for the end of April.

A cut to the Chinese government’s solar subsidies will hit all the Chinese companies hard. U.S. solar makers First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) and SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) are less vulnerable to a shift in Chinese subsidies, and their relative strength in designing, engineering, and installing solar PV systems has helped them ease the pain of falling module prices.

Since the beginning of the year, SunPower’s shares have more than doubled while First Solar’s shares are off about 12%. Of the Chinese solar makers, only J.A. Solar shows a gain (about 1%) since the beginning of the year. And there are more hard times ahead for the Chinese companies.

For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest rise 3.5% to 2.14 million shares, which is 7.1% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest increased by 6.4% to 17.77 million shares, which represents 29.5% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed an increase of 8.3% in short interest, to 38.26 million shares, or about 32.2% of GT’s float.

The short interest in MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) grew 2.1% to 16.74 million shares, about 7.3% of MEMC’s float.

SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest rise by 11.9% to 9.93 million shares, 25% of the company’s total float.

J.A. Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed an increase of 15.4% in short interest to 3.36 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest decline of 19% to 3.55 million shares.

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) showed a rise of 4.2% in short interest to 28.46 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw short interest rise of 5.6% to 19 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a rise of 5.6% in short interest to 5.67 million shares.

Shares of the Chinese solar stocks continue to be volatile, and share prices are tied to news related to government spending on planned solar installation in China during 2013. First Solar’s weak earnings brought some shorts back. And short interest in SunPower jumped again, likely due to the belief that there is not much good news coming from the firm, which has seen share prices spike in the first few months of the year.

These stocks have had a decent bounce since the beginning of the year, with SunPower getting the biggest jolt, up more than 138% at its peak in mid-February. Since then, shares have pulled back to a still-respectable year-to-date gain of 121%.

First Solar peaked in at the same time, up about 17% and has since moved steadily down to a year-to-date loss of more than 13%.

Trina Solar peaked in early January, up about 34%, and has trailed downward ever since to lose of about 3%.

And Suntech also peaked in early January, up about 22% and now down about 22%. Suntech has some unique problems, which we covered earlier today.

All except Trina Solar are already trading above their consensus price targets, even with the steep declines since the first of the year. None is a buy-and-hold candidate.

The poor report is rippling through the solar sector today, pulling share prices down for First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR), GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) and Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT). Solar maker SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) fell earlier this morning, but an initiation of the stock with an Outperform rating at Northland Capital has pulled SunPower’s shares up to a small gain. Wafer maker MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR), like SunPower, dived earlier, but has since recovered to post a small gain.

Shares of Yingli are down 4.6% this morning, at $2.29 in a 52-week range of $1.25 to $4.60. Other Chinese solar stocks, like LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL), J.A. Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) and Suntech Power Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP), are trading down from about 1.2% to 3.8% following Yingli’s results.

In the Chinese solar sector we tracked the following short interest changes: J.A. Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO), LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK), Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP), Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) and Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE).

For China-based firms, the percentage of shares short is not available because the companies are also listed on other exchanges.

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) saw short interest rise 1.5% to 2.07 million shares, 6.9% of the company’s total float.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) short interest fall by 8.7% to 16.71 million shares, which represents 27.8% of the company’s float.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) showed a decrease of 2.9% in short interest, to 35.32 million shares, about 29.9% of GT’s float.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) showed a decline of 1.3% in short interest, to 16.4 million shares, about 7.2% of MEMC’s float.

Sunpower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) saw short interest rise by 33.3% to 8.87 million shares, or 22.3% of the company’s total float.

J.A. Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO) showed a decrease of 0.2% in short interest to 2.91 million shares.

LDK Solar Co. Inc. (NYSE: LDK) saw short interest rise 2.1% to 4.38 million shares.

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) showed a rise of 6.9% in short interest, to 27.32 million shares.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) saw short interest drop 0.1% to 17.99 million shares.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) showed a rise of 13% in short interest, to 5.37 million shares.

Shares of the Chinese solar stocks continue to be volatile, and share prices are tied to news related to government spending on planned solar installations in China during 2013. First Solar’s terrible results reported earlier this week probably have a lot of shorts kicking themselves for bailing out too soon. They will be back. Short interest in SunPower jumped after its earnings came in decently, as shorts probably believe there is not much positive news ahead.