Photovoltaic (PV) inverters supplier SolarEdge Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SEDG) on Monday reported a 47% on-the-year drop in first-quarter net profit but said its revenues jumped by 30% and reached a record-high level.
The company’s GAAP net profit stood at USD 19 million (EUR 16.9m) and, despite falling year-on-year, improved when compared to the USD 12.9 million booked in the last quarter of 2018. Revenues came at USD 271.9 million, setting a quarterly record thanks to substantial growth, mainly in Europe, said chairman and CEO Guy Sella. In the second quarter, the company's revenue is expected to grow further.
During the quarter, SolarEdge shipped 1.1 GW of PV inverters and entered the e-mobility market by acquiring a majority stake in powertrain technology provider SMRE. It also continued work on the integration of South Korean lithium-ion cells, batteries and energy storage solutions provider Kokam Co Ltd, in which it bought a 75% stake in October 2018.
“We are very happy to be able to continue to grow our solar business while leveraging profits for further investment in our new areas of technology development, which include UPS products, lithium-ion batteries and integrated powertrain electronics for electric vehicles,” the CEO said.
More details about the company’s first-quarter performance are available in the table.
| in USD (except percentages) |
Q1 2019 |
Q4 2018 |
Q1 2018 |
| Total revenues |
271.9m |
263.7m |
209.9m |
| Revenues related to the solar business |
253.1m |
243.4m |
209.9m |
| GAAP gross margin (%) |
31.7 |
30.2 |
37.9 |
| -- for the solar business (%) |
33.8 |
32.3 |
N/A |
| GAAP operating profit |
28m |
24.4m |
40.8m |
| GAAP net profit |
19m |
12.9m |
35.7m |
| Non-GAAP net profit |
32.9m |
31.5m |
42.5m |
| Cash flow from operating activities |
56.5m |
46.9m |
64m |
At the end of March, SolarEdge had USD 398.7 million in cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, bank deposits and marketable securities, up from USD 392.2 million at end-2018.
Looking ahead, the company expects to book second-quarter revenues of USD 310 million-320 million, of which USD 290 million-300 million will be from its solar products business. Gross margin is seen to range between 32% and 34%. Gross margin from the sale of solar products is forecast at 33%-35%.
(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.892)
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SolarEdge headquarters. Source: SolarEdge Technologies
