JinkoSolar Fails to Shine on Earnings, Stock Goes Cold

JinkoSolar Holdings Company JKS is down big on Wednesday on word of a lousy fourth quarter. The Shangrao, China-based firm lost $5.51 per share during the fourth quarter, down over 113 percent year-over-year. And, it fell wildly short of the $0.80 loss analysts expected. Fourth quarter revenue declined 2.6 percent from Q4 2011 to $187.3 million and came in far below the Wall Street consensus of $244.5 million. Regarding the lackluster quarter, CEO Kangping Chen stated, “Our business continued to face significant challenges during the fourth quarter due to continued module oversupply and the economic uncertainties lingering over the global economy.” For the year, the photovoltaic product manufacturer lost $11.16 per share, down 1,330 percent from 2011. The loss was nearly double the expected amount of $5.89. Total 2012 revenue declined 36 percent to $769.6 million and finished well below estimates of around $829 million. Solar Shipments Shine Jinko's fourth quarter solar product shipments increased 33 percent year-over-year to around 302 megawatts. The company sold more solar modules alone in Q4 2012 than all solar products combined in Q4 2011. For the year, solar product shipments grew 25 percent to a record high of over 1,188 megawatts. Solar modules accounted for ¾ of the company's business while silicon wafers and solar cells rounded out the remaining portion. Sun Rising in the Far East In October, Jinko won a bid from China Three Gorges New Energy Group to supply 50 megawatts of solar modules for a power plant in Gansu Province, China. And, in December, the company signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Jinchuan Group to jointly invest in and develop a 200 megawatt solar power plant in Jinchang, China. It is expected to be one of Asia's largest independent solar plants. Then, in February, Jinko circled back and signed another deal with China Three Gorges New Energy Group. Under the agreement, it will provide a total of 600 megawatts of solar panels from 2013 through 2015 for installation in Western China. A Sunny Day in the Very Deep South In December, Jinko inked a deal to supply 81 megawatts of solar modules to WBHO-Building Energy for a solar park project in Gamagara, South Africa. It's Not Always Sunny in New York After declining over 58 percent between mid-February and early April and closing close to $4 on April 3, Jinko bounced back substantially. The stock rose 43.5 percent between April 4 and Tuesday. However, the company's awful earnings have sent it back on a downslide. JinkoSolar is down around 6.5 percent on Wednesday.