RenaSola loss expands as weak pricing continues
RenaSola 4Q loss grows as weak pricing continues; shares rise as it pledges cost-cutting
Chinese solar panel maker ReneSola Ltd. said on Thursday that its fourth-quarter loss widened as selling prices continued to decline because of a worldwide glut of solar modules and wafers.
The company lost $49.8 million, or 58 cents per U.S. share, for the quarter that ended Dec. 31. It lost $36.7 million, or 43 cents per share, a year ago.
Revenue grew 63.3 percent to $306.5 million from $187.7 million a year earlier as demand grew sharply in China.
With lower selling prices for each unit, profits were down. The company said it would continue to focus on cutting costs to improve its margins and to put the company in a better position once conditions improve.
Shipments of wafers and modules doubled from a year earlier. However, just since the third quarter, selling prices for solar wafers fell to 24 cents per watt, from 28 cents, for wafers, and fell to 63 cents per wafer, from 67 cents, for modules.
Wafer shipments rose 60 percent to 392.7 megawatts, and module shipments rose 239 percent to 320.5 megawatts. The total was 713.2 megawatts.
For the first quarter, the company expects to ship wafers and modules totaling 660 megawatts to 680 megawatts. It predicted quarterly revenue of $260 million to $270 million.
Shares rose 13 cents, or 6.1 percent, to $2.27 in morning trading. Over the past 52 weeks they've traded between $1.08 and $3.02.
