15 Great Ways to Invest in Sustainable Energy

As concerns about climate change grow, so has the interest in investing in sustainable energy. There are myriad ways to do just that, including directly in companies that produce power, in funds and trusts that invest in those companies, and in improvements you can make in and around your own home. Following are some suggestions to make investments in sustainable energy.

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Hundreds of thousands of homeowners have put solar panels on their roofs. How much it costs and how much you'll save vary widely, but the U.S. Department of Energy says the technology is already cost competitive with electricity sold by local utilities in some markets.

ALSO READ: Why Solar Is the Biggest Renewable Energy Opportunity for Investors

iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (NASDAQ: ICLN) is an exchange-traded fund that invests in an index-weighted collection of companies operating in the clean energy sector around the world. Shares right now sell for about $19 and produce a yield of about 1.4%.

Hannan Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital (NYSE: HASI) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that provides capital via lending to and investing in a wide range of solar, wind, energy controls, and sustainable building projects. You can do good while doing really well with this one, too. HASI stock has nearly doubled the total return of the S&P 500 over the past decade or so.

ALSO READ: Are REITs a Good Investment?

Tankless water heaters and geothermal heating and cooling systems are two other ways to consider investing in sustainable technologies at your home. They can lower energy costs and increase comfort at the same time.

NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) is the parent company of Florida Power & Light but is also a major investor in wind and solar solutions, renewable generation facilities, and battery storage projects.

This big utility is also a Dividend Aristocrat, with 28 consecutive years of dividend increases that have its stock yielding about 2.1% at a share price of about $79.

5 Stocks Under $49
Presented by Motley Fool Stock Advisor
We hear it over and over from investors, "I wish I had bought Amazon or Netflix when they were first recommended by The Motley Fool. I'd be sitting on a gold mine!" It's true, but we think these 5 other stocks are screaming buys. And you can buy them now for less than $49 a share! Click here to learn how you can grab a copy of "5 Growth Stocks Under $49" for FREE for a limited time only.

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) doesn't just make those iconic electric cars. Elon Musk's company designs, produces, sells, leases, and installs a wide range of solar energy generation and energy storage products. A share of Tesla stock will cost you about $720 these days, and that's with no dividend payout.

Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE: BEP) owns and operates an international portfolio of renewable energy generating facilities that create electricity through wind, solar, hydroelectric, distributed generation, cogeneration, pumped storage, and biomass sources. The company's stock is selling for about $35 and yields about 3.7%.

ALSO READ: This Renewable Energy Stock Is Plugging Into 2 Potentially Massive Market Opportunities

Enphase Energy (NASDAQ: ENPH) and its subsidiaries produce and sell home energy solutions -- including microinverter energy conversion hardware and monitoring software -- to solar photovoltaic system manufacturers, to installers, and directly to homeowners. Enphase stock has been hot, soaring eightfold since January 2020 to a current share price of about $193.

ON Semiconductor (NASDAQ: ON) is a major designer and producer of semiconductors that are integral to the operation of solar power and energy storage systems from the residential to commercial to the grid level. Business has been good. Its stock has risen by about 175% in the past couple of years and is now trading for about $56 a share.

5 Stocks Under $49
Presented by Motley Fool Stock Advisor
We hear it over and over from investors, "I wish I had bought Amazon or Netflix when they were first recommended by The Motley Fool. I'd be sitting on a gold mine!" It's true, but we think these 5 other stocks are screaming buys. And you can buy them now for less than $49 a share! Click here to learn how you can grab a copy of "5 Growth Stocks Under $49" for FREE for a limited time only.

First Trust Global Wind Energy ETF (NYSEMKT: FAN) is an exchange-traded fund that tracks the ISE Clean Edge Global Wind Energy Index of global companies active in the wind power industry.

This ETF's performance has been nothing to sneeze at, either, with a total return that has closely tracked the S&P 500 for a decade, including a yield of about 1.9% at a share price of about $17.

ALSO READ: How to Invest in Index Funds

Ormat Technologies (NYSE: ORA) is a global supplier of renewable geothermal and other alternative energy technologies, with a product lineup that ranges from heat exchangers and turbines to complete power plants.

Ormat is no doormat as a stock, either, with a total return of about 13% over the past year compared with a 12% dive by the S&P 500 over the same time frame.

First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) has been converting sunlight into electricity for more than 20 years and has grown into an international provider of cadmium telluride solar modules, a basic building block of what we laypeople know as solar panels.

First Solar stock is down this year and trading for about $65 a share, but analysts give it a consensus price target of about $87, so the sun may yet shine soon on this veteran producer of solar power technology.

If you consider electric cars to be part of a sustainable energy strategy, then Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: RIVN) certainly belongs on your radar.

The company has now begun delivering its long-awaited pickup trucks from its Illinois assembly plant and has plans for another production facility in Georgia.

Rivian stock has been driven down big-time since going public last November, and you can scoop some up at about $31 a share.

You might not think of a traditional chemical company as a key player in sustainable energy, but Albemarle (NYSE: ALB) is one of the largest producers of the lithium compounds needed to create the batteries that power electric vehicles.

That's helped power a total return nearly triple that of the S&P 500 since Albemarle was formed in 1994 as a spinoff of the Ethyl Corporation.

5 Stocks Under $49
Presented by Motley Fool Stock Advisor
We hear it over and over from investors, "I wish I had bought Amazon or Netflix when they were first recommended by The Motley Fool. I'd be sitting on a gold mine!" It's true, but we think these 5 other stocks are screaming buys. And you can buy them now for less than $49 a share! Click here to learn how you can grab a copy of "5 Growth Stocks Under $49" for FREE for a limited time only.

Doing well while doing good has been on the minds of a growing number of investors for a while now, and there is no shortage of ways to do just that when it comes to investing in sustainable energy. We hope this list gives you a few avenues to consider.

Marc Rapport has positions in Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends NextEra Energy and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends First Solar. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.