Enphase says Q4 2015 more challenging than expected

US microinverter maker Enphase Energy Inc (NASDAQ:ENPH) on Tuesday warned of a more challenging-than-expected fourth quarter of 2015 and reported a third-quarter net profit of USD 624,000 (EUR 570,000), down 23% on the year.

The company expects its revenue in the fourth quarter to decline to between USD 62 million and USD 70 million due to a correction of higher inventory levels in its distribution channel and softer overall market demand. More aggressive pricing, meanwhile, is to squeeze gross margin to between 23% and 26%.

President and chief executive Paul Nahi expressed confidence that the company would be able to improve its competitive position by reducing product costs over the next 24 months. "In addition, we expect to drive new revenue streams from our AC Battery storage system, as well as the Enphase Home Energy Solution," he said.

In the third quarter, Enphase's revenue increased by 4% year-on-year to USD 102.9 million. Sales were up 28% in MW terms to 219 MW, representing 950,000 microinverters, while gross margin declined to 30.6% from 32.8%. Operating profit fell slightly to USD 1.8 million from USD 1.9 million in the third quarter of 2014.

In the first nine months of the year, Enphase narrowed its net loss to USD 6.3 million from USD 8.5 million in the same period of 2014. Revenue increased to USD 291.6 million from USD 238.7 million.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.913)

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