JA Solar Q4 Profit Climbs, Sees Sequentially Lower Shipments In Q1 - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (JASO) Friday said its fourth-quarter net income was $50.9 million, compared to $26.6 million last year. Earnings per ADS were $0.98, compared to $0.49 in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Adjusted earnings per ADS were $0.98, compared to $0.45 last year.

Net revenue was RMB 4.0 billion or $574.8 million, a decrease of 13.1% from the prior year, and 4.1% sequentially. Total shipments were 1,416.2 MW, in line with the firm's previously announced guidance. External shipments of 1,411.9 MW increased 5.5% year over year and 13.8% sequentially.

Looking ahead, the company expects first-quarter of 2017 total cell and module shipments to be in the range of 1,200 to 1,300 MW, essentially all being external shipments.

For fiscal 2017, shipments are expected to be in the range of 6.0 to 6.5 GW, including 200 to 250 MW of module shipments to downstream projects. The company noted that revenues will not be recognized for the modules shipped to the Company's downstream projects.

Baofang Jin, Chairman and CEO of JA Solar, said, "Looking ahead, we expect demand in the domestic Chinese market to remain solid in the first half of 2017, followed by a potential slowdown in the second half. Nonetheless, we are confident that our balanced global footprint and flexible business model will enable us to adjust to evolving market conditions."