Freedom Acquisition 1 Corp. (FACT) Lowers Complete Solaria Valuation, Adds Funding

Freedom I (NYSE:FACT) announced this morning that it has lowered the pre-money equity valuation by half for its target Complete Solaria while bringing in $10 million more in commitments to its bridge financing.

The changes drop Complete Solaria’s valuation to $225 million from $450 million at announcement. Freedom I tipped that it was considering such a change in a presentation it released in late May and comes in reaction to dropping share prices among Complete Solaria’s listed comp universe.

Complete Solaria was created from the 2022 merger of two California-based residential solar companies, which made it a vertically integrated developer in the space from panel technology through installation and customer financing.

The presentation noted that as of May 22, its downstream solar peers had seen their share price drop between -34.7% and -59% since the announcement of Complete Solaria’s combination with Freedom I in October.

Upstream solar developers had fared better with peers Maxeon (NASDAQ:MAXN) and SolarEdge (NASDAQ:SEDG) each performing positively over this period, but Enphase (NASDAQ:ENPH) and Generac (NYSE:GNRC) saw share declines of -43.7% and -36.9%, respectively.

Freedom I said it believes the adjustment will provide a more attractive entry point for investors, perhaps as evidenced by the fact it has now expanded its bridge financing to $40 million with the new funding.

This is still well below the transaction’s $100 million minimum cash condition, but Freedom I still has $114 million in its trust with 67.4% redeemed thus far. The parties are aiming for a third quarter 2023 close, and the SPAC can automatically extend its deadline up to September 2.