SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) today announced financial results for its 2013 first quarter ended March 31, 2013.
"SunPower started 2013 with strong quarterly performance. Our results reflect the benefits of our superior solar panel technology combined with strong performance from both our rooftop and ground mount teams," said Tom Werner, SunPower president and CEO. "Regionally, North America posted excellent results in all end segments. In our power plant business, we started initial construction of the 579-megawatt (MW) Antelope Valley Solar Projects (AVSP) for MidAmerican Solar and reached 90 percent completion on the California Valley Solar Ranch (CVSR) project owned by NRG Energy. With installation at CVSR expected to be finished by the end of the second quarter, we are on plan for full project completion by the end of the year. Demand in the residential lease business remained solid and once again exceeded our finance capacity in the first quarter.
"Additionally, demand in Japan remains very strong as Toshiba and Sharp accounted for approximately 25 percent of total first-quarter shipments. Finally, in Europe, we saw modest improvement in industry conditions during the quarter and are on track to return to profitability in the region by the end of 2013," concluded Werner.
Key milestones achieved by the company since the fourth quarter of 2012 include:
"As a result of solid execution, we exceeded our financial targets for the quarter while further strengthening our balance sheet," said Chuck Boynton, SunPower CFO. "We also continued to prudently manage our working capital needs as we reduced inventory and generated $216 million in free cash flow during the quarter. With our strong project backlog, continued growth in residential lease and global focus on improving our cost structure, we remain confident in achieving our 2013 financial targets."
First quarter fiscal 2013 GAAP results include pre-tax charges, expenses and adjustments totaling approximately $90.4 million, including a $68.1 million gross margin adjustment related to the timing of revenue recognition from utility power plant projects and construction activities; $8.5 million in stock-based compensation expense; $11.9 million in non-cash interest expense; a benefit of $0.6 million in restructuring related to the October 2012 restructuring plan, and $2.3 million of other adjustments. These adjustments and charges are excluded from the company's non-GAAP results. Additionally, first quarter GAAP results include an adjustment of approximately $60.8 million in revenue related to GAAP real estate accounting requirements.
Second Quarter 2013 Financial Outlook
SunPower will provide the company's second quarter and fiscal year 2013 outlook at its Analyst Day to be held on May 15, 2013 in New York City starting at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Please note that the entire event will be webcast and relevant materials will be posted to the company's website prior to the commencement of the event. To listen to the webcast, investors are encouraged to visit the company's Events and Presentations section of the SunPower Investor Relations page at //investors.sunpowercorp.com/events.cfm to register.
The company will host a conference call for investors this afternoon to discuss its first quarter 2013 performance at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time. The call will be webcast and can be accessed from SunPower's website at //investors.sunpowercorp.com/events.cfm.
This press release contains both GAAP and non-GAAP financial information. Non-GAAP historical figures are reconciled to the closest GAAP equivalent categories in the financial attachment of this press release. Please note that the company has posted supplemental information and slides related to its first quarter 2013 performance on the Events and Presentations section of the SunPower Investor Relations page at //investors.sunpowercorp.com/events.cfm. The capacity of power plants in this release is described in approximate megawatts on an alternating current (ac) basis unless otherwise noted.