- Solar power company SunPower Corp. said Thursday its third-quarter profit nearly tripled as sales surged with a larger dealer network. For the period ended Sept. 28, the company posted profit of $22.4 million, or 26 cents per share, compared with profit of $8.4 million, or 10 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding certain one-time items, such as amortization and stock-based compensation, the company earned 60 cents per share, down from 61 cents per share in the year-ago period.
- Revenue jumped 61 percent to $377.5 million from $234.3 million. SunPower's components unit saw its worldwide dealer network rise more than 25 percent between the periods.
- Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect, on average, earnings of 56 cents per share on revenue of $350.4 million. Analysts typically exclude one-time items.
- Operating expenses rose 65 percent to $52.1 million from $31.6 million, and a provision for income taxes spiked to $27 million from $1.4 million.
- Gross margin 27.0%
- "Overall, global industry fundamentals remain strong and demand is increasing across multiple geographies."
- SunPower Corp. guided its fourth-quarter sales and profit to a range including Wall Street's estimates Thursday, citing strong global demand and falling costs. Excluding one-time items, the solar power company expects to earn 73 cents to 80 cents per share for the fourth quarter on revenue of $405 million to $435 million. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect, on average, fourth-quarter earnings of 76 cents per share on revenue of $414.9 million.
- Tom Werner, SunPower's chief executive, cited "strong global demand trends ... as well as our internal execution on our goal of reducing system installed costs by 50 percent from 2006 to 2012" when providing the guidance.
- For the year, the company forecasts profit of $2.34 to $2.41 per share on revenue of $1.44 billion to $1.46 billion.
[Aug 14: Photovoltaic Solar Looks to be Arriving in the United States]
[Jul 10: Well It's a Start - Sunpower to Build 2 Solar Power Plants]
3 comments:
No trust at all. The Fast Money guys laugh at them as if they aren't real companies. Cramer was very negative on the solar/wind sector. Should've known when he developed the WINDex it was time to sell. Guess our key will be figuring out when a level of trust re-emerges and that probably has alot to do with the expected price of oil.
It isn't just solar or wind.. It is anything Chinese. If you read 'Becoming Your Own China Guru', the author "James Trippon" discusses the pitfalls of investing in China. In particular, he notes the lack of transparency and quality bookkeeping and problems with the State Owned Enterprises (SOC).. If you follow Michael Pettis' blog, he fills in some of the blanks in China's financial side.
Compare Tyson (TSN) to Xonping (HOGS) and you'll find that HOGS revenue growth, earning growth, free cash flow and debt/equity beat the pants off TSN, and they've just opened a new processing plant that will up their output by 40%... Yet look at the stock action.
The same is true of energy equities such as CEO, solar, medicine (course, you have to scrape the melamine off your pills...) and even internet stocks.. Compare the numbers for YHOO, GOOG, BIDU, SINA and SOHU... Look at the growth and revenue growth of SOHU, and you'll understand why the CEO/Owner of SOHU outbid everyone for a luch with Warren Buffet...
I think though that you need to buy these stocks on dips and expect them to be a little rocky. And I'd seriously consider stocks like SOHU, CHL or HOGS that have internal velocity and are not competing in the world market. In our market, I suspect as the dollar strengthens, Chinese stocks will also have a harder time competing against the US.
jegan
SunPower's P/E is low because they re-invest their money. I just came back from their annual dealer meeting at the Solar Expo in San Diego and bought 100 shares. They are strong, smart, have BIG plans and are very well managed. Alternately, I wouldn't sell a Chinese panel to my worst enemy and I wouldn't invest long-term in any Chinese company unless I personally knew the managers for ten years. I'm sure there are well run and honest Chinese companies but the reps I've talked to sure haven't conveyed that.
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