In the past, renewable energy-sector exchange-traded funds have consistently underperformed the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. The clouds, however, may be starting to lift for the sector.

The past five years haven’t been good to clean-energy stocks. The Invesco Solar ETF, comprised of 22 various solar industry companies, fell 41.3% over that period, while the iShares Global Clean Energy ETF, the largest exchange-traded fund in the US investing in clean energy, dropped 9.2%, well below the S&P 500’s 13.5% rise.