Following last quarter's surprisingly sunny report, SunPower
After a raft of earnings estimate cuts earlier this week -- by a group of analysts tired of being behind the curve, perhaps -- the solar company went ahead and trounced expectations for the fourth quarter. The revenue line, at $400 million and change, was anticipated, but margins and earnings were surprisingly strong. This follows a preliminary release from Suntech Power
SunPower's "A" shares rose significantly today, and the neglected "B" shares -- trading at roughly a 20% discount, despite their superior voting rights -- narrowed that gap somewhat by rising even higher, percentage-wise. The Chipotle
But that's a story for another day. What exactly is powering SunPower's earnings engine?
Part of the company's advantage is its global dealer network, which I'm not sure I've ever discussed. The dealer base tripled in 2008, giving this company perhaps an unparalleled "on the ground" view of the worldwide solar market. Through this well-diversified channel, SunPower is able to quickly shift resources toward stronger markets. In the fourth quarter, that was the U.S., believe it or not. More than half of the company's revenues came from here.
While tax equity troubles are causing trouble for commercial customers, the U.S. also looks like a big growth driver for 2009 and beyond. In particular, there's huge demand from the utility market, with SunPower actively negotiating more than one gigawatt of projects on top of the work it's already doing for the likes of PG&E and Florida's FPL Group
On the power plant/utility front, SunPower will keep going head-to-head against thin-film wunderkind First Solar
SunPower "B" shares appear to be invisible to Motley Fool CAPS participants, with only 50-odd ratings to the "A" shares' 1,500. Looks like an opportunity to me. You can rate the cheaper "B" shares right here.
