What happened
Dimming through much of April, shares of solar power specialist Enphase Energy (ENPH 3.79%) are shining much brighter in investors' eyes after the company reported first-quarter earnings 2022 yesterday. That's not the only thing that's powering the bulls' enthusiasm today, though. Management's auspicious outlook for the second quarter and Wall Street's positive sentiment for the solar stock are also motivating investors to click the buy button.
As of 11:24 a.m. ET on Wednesday, shares of Enphase Energy were up 7.2%.
So what
Exceeding analysts' expectations that the company would report $432.3 million on the top line, Enphase Energy reported sales of $441.3 million for the first quarter of 2022, representing a new company record for quarterly revenue.
While it increased unit shipments of its microinverter systems 16% on a year-over-year basis, Enphase recognized greater growth from shipments of its energy storage systems, which increased 187% from 42 megawatt hours in the first quarter or 2021 to 120.4 megawatt hours in the recently completed quarter.
Image source: Getty Images.
In addition to the surprise on the top of the income statement, Enphase Energy also beat bottom-line expectations. Whereas analysts had anticipated the company would report adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.66, Enphase booked adjusted EPS of $0.79.
Looking ahead to the second quarter of 2022, investors can expect to see continued growth, according to the revenue guidance that management provided: $490 million to $520 million. Should the company achieve the midpoint of this guidance, it will represent year-over-year sales growth of 60%.
Encouraged by the company's strong earnings report, several firms are revealing their beliefs today that there's upside to Enphase's stock.
- Cowen raised its price target to $240 from $227.
- Oppenheimer lifted its price target to $307 from $290.
- B. Riley hiked its price target to $171 from $155.
Now what
Generating greater revenue and earnings than analysts' expectations, Enphase is off to a strong start to 2022, and the company seems confident that growth will extend into the second quarter of the year as well. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that investors are opting to power their portfolios with the renewable energy company today.
