Trina Solar Turns To Profit In Q1 - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Trina Solar Limited (TSL) said that net income for the first quarter of 2014 was $26.5 million, compared to a net loss of $63.7 million in the first quarter of 2013. Earnings per ADS were $0.37 compared to loss per ADS of $0.90 last year.

The Company had a foreign currency exchange gain of $0.8 million in the first quarter of 2014, which included a loss in the fair value of derivative instruments, compared to a net loss of $19.0 million in the first quarter of 2013 Net revenues in the first quarter of 2014 were $444.8 million, an increase of 70.9% year-over-year. Total shipments were 558.0 MW, of which 23.8 MW were shipped to the Company's own downstream power plants in the UK, compared to total shipments of 392.6 MW in the first quarter of 2013.

The year-over-year increase in shipments and revenues was driven largely by rising shipment volumes due to growing demand from key geographical regions, particularly China, Japan and the U.S.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.03 per share and revenues of $452.55 million for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

In the second quarter of 2014 the Company expects to ship between 950 MW and 1,010 MW of PV modules, of which 150 MW to 170 MW will be shipped to its downstream PV projects. Revenues will not be recognized for the modules shipped to its own developed projects as required by U.S. GAAP regulations.

The Company expects that polysilicon prices will remain relatively stable with upward pressure. This will adversely impact its gross margin. The Company will continue to work diligently to reduce its in-house manufacturing costs to mitigate any adverse impact to its gross margin. The Company expects its blended gross margin for the second quarter of 2014 will be in the mid-teens in percentage terms. Such guidance is based on the exchange rate between the Euro and the U.S. dollar as of May 21, 2014.

The Company reiterates its 2014 guidance of total PV module shipments between 3.6 GW and 3.8 GW, of which 400 MW to 500 MW of PV modules will be shipped to the Company's own downstream projects. Revenues will not be recognized for the modules shipped to its own projects as required by U.S. GAAP regulations. The Company maintains its guidance of completed downstream PV projects of between 400 MW and 500 MW for the year of 2014.