JinkoSolar Announces First Quarter 2018 Financial Results

SHANGHAI, China, June 26, 2018 -- JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. ("JinkoSolar" or the "Company") (NYSE: JKS), a global leader in the solar PV industry, today announced its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018. First Quarter 2018 Highlights Total solar module shipments were 2,015 megawatts ("MW") (including 209 MW to be used in the Company’s overseas downstream solar projects for which no revenue has been recognized), a decrease of 18.8% from 2,481 MW in the fourth quarter of 2017 and a decrease of 2.6% from 2,068 MW in the first quarter of 2017. Total revenues were RMB4.57 billion (US$728.1 million), a decrease of 28.1% from the fourth quarter of 2017 and a decrease of 20.9% from the first quarter of 2017. Gross margin was 14.4%, compared with 11.6% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 11.2% in the first quarter of 2017. Income from operations was RMB125.0 million (US$19.9 million), compared with RMB91.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB56.8 million in the first quarter of 2017. Net income attributable to the Company’s ordinary shareholders was RMB3.6 million (US$0.6 million) in the first quarter of 2018, compared with RMB22.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB60.6 million in the first quarter of 2017. Diluted earnings per American depositary share ("ADS") were RMB0.096 (US$0.016). Non-GAAP net income attributable to the Company's ordinary shareholders in the first quarter of 2018 was RMB11.0 million (US$1.7 million), compared with RMB41.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB80.0 million in the first quarter of 2017. Non-GAAP basic and diluted earnings per ADS were RMB0.300 (US$0.048) and RMB0.296 (US$0.048) in the first quarter of 2018, compared with RMB1.272 and RMB1.232 in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB2.536 and RMB2.508 in the first quarter of 2017. Mr. Kangping Chen, JinkoSolar's Chief Executive Officer commented, “We shipped 2,015MW of solar modules during the quarter and generated total revenues of $728.1 million. Our gross margin increased to 14.4%, compared with 11.6% last quarter as we benefit from the drop in polysilicon prices and the further optimization of our manufacturing costs as a result of continued technological improvement and reduced OEM usage.” “The new policies regulating the solar industry jointly issued by three Chinese ministries on May 31, affected market sentiment and our ASPs. These new policies are aimed at increasing the pace of achieving grid parity, accelerating the removal of outdated capacity and releasing the pressure of new energy fund deficits. As a result, we expect to see a decline in prices across our industrial supply chain which will allow us to further cut both silicon and non-silicon costs during the second half of the year to offset the decline in the ASPs. Despite the strong initial reaction to the new policies, we remain optimistic about the demand of the Chinese market for the full year 2018, which is expected to hit 35G+. Looking into 2019, aside from the Top Runner Program, poverty alleviation and DG projects, we expect to see a large number of grid parity projects under new business models appear in the second of half of 2019.” “We already have great visibility for the full year 2018 with over 80% of our order book already filled, which is mostly made up of overseas orders with fixed prices throughout the year, and we have already received a number of prepayments. Our production capacity is fully utilized now and is expected to remain so during the second half of the year. We believe the Chinese government’s new policies to have relatively limited impact on our operations over the short term, and we remain confident in our future business prospects and the long-term growth of the industry overall.” “Overseas orders will account for about 80% of our overall shipments for the entire year demonstrating our expanding global footprint and the success we have seen in reducing our reliance on any single market. Solar is becoming more and more competitive worldwide. We saw resurgent demand in Southern European markets such as Spain, Portugal and Italy, driven by grid-parity business model, as well as booming demand in new emerging markets such as Latin American, the Middle East and North Africa. We expect to see demand in India rebound strongly as module price goes down.” “While the policy changes in China have created a challenging domestic market environment, our extensive global sales network and geographically dispersed manufacturing facilities allow us remain flexible and be prepared to rapidly adapt to any future policy changes. We are fully prepared for the market consolidation and the new era of grid parity. We will continue to take advantages of our brand, technology, and global infrastructure to expand our market share and further consolidate our leading position in the industry. First Quarter 2018 Financial Results Total Revenues Total revenues in the first quarter of 2018 were RMB4.57 billion (US$728.1 million), a decrease of 28.1% from RMB6.35 billion in the fourth quarter of 2017 and a decrease of 20.9% from RMB5.78 billion in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential decrease was mainly attributable to a decrease in the shipment of solar modules in the first quarter of 2018. The year-over-year decrease was mainly attributable to a decrease in solar module shipments and a decline in the average selling price of solar modules in 2018. Adoption of New Revenue Standard: On January 1, 2018, the Company adopted new revenue guidance ASC Topic 606, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”, and applied the modified retrospective method to contracts which were not completed as of January 1, 2018. No cumulative catch up adjustment of initially applying this standard was recognized at the date of initial application on January 1, 2018. Adoption of the new standards related to revenue recognition had no impact on the Company’s reported results for the current period. Gross Profit and Gross Margin Gross profit in the first quarter of 2018 was RMB656.1 million (US$104.6 million), compared with RMB735.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB649.0 million in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential decrease was mainly attributable to a decrease in the shipment of solar modules in the first quarter of 2018. The year-over-year increase was mainly attributable to decreasing solar module cost, which was partially offset by a decrease in solar module shipments in 2018. Gross margin was 14.4% in the first quarter of 2018, compared with 11.6% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 11.2% in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential and year-over-year increases were mainly attributable to a decrease in silicon cost in the first quarter of 2018, which was partially offset by a decline in the average selling price of solar modules in the first quarter of 2018. Income from Operations and Operating Margin Income from operations in the first quarter of 2018 was RMB125.0 million (US$19.9 million), compared with RMB91.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB56.8 million in the first quarter of 2017. Operating margin in the first quarter of 2018 was 2.7%, compared with 1.4% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 1.0% in the first quarter of 2017. Total operating expenses in the first quarter of 2018 were RMB531.1 million (US$84.7 million), a decrease of 17.5% from RMB644.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and a decrease of 10.3% from RMB592.2 million in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential decease was mainly due to a decrease in shipping cost as a result of decreased solar module shipments, and a decrease of bad debt expenses attributable to the reversal of allowance for doubtful accounts upon subsequent collections. The year-over-year decrease was primarily due to a decrease in shipping costs. Total operating expenses accounted for 11.6% of total revenues in the first quarter of 2018, compared to 10.1% in the fourth quarter of 2017 and 10.3% in the first quarter of 2017. Interest Expense, Net Net interest expense in the first quarter of 2018 was RMB85.4 million (US$13.6 million), an increase of 53.8% from RMB55.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and an increase of 49.5% from RMB57.1 million in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential and year-over-year increases were due to interest expense associated with discounted notes receivable and an increase in borrowings. Exchange Gain / (Loss), Net The Company recorded a net exchange loss (including change in fair value of forward contracts) of RMB90.8 million (US$14.5 million) in the first quarter of 2018, compared to a net exchange loss of RMB33.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and a net exchange loss of RMB5.2 million in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential and year-over-year losses were primarily due to the continued depreciation of the US dollar against the RMB during the quarter. Income Tax Expense / (Benefit), Net The Company recorded an income tax benefit of RMB3.3 million (US$0.5 million) in the first quarter of 2018, compared with an income tax expense of RMB31.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and an income tax expense of RMB1.5 million in the first quarter of 2017. The sequential and year-over-year change was due to one of the Company’s PRC subsidiaries receiving a tax deduction certificate in the first quarter of 2018, entitling the subsidiary to income tax deductions for 2017 and 2018. The Company recorded an out-of-period adjustment of RMB4.6 million (US$0.7 million) in the first quarter of 2018 resulting from income tax benefits for one of its PRC entities, which should have been recorded in 2017. Neither the originating amount in 2017 nor the out-of-period adjustment amount recorded in 2018 was material to the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the respective periods. Net Income and Earnings per Share Net income attributable to the Company’s ordinary shareholders was RMB3.6 million (US$0.6 million) in the first quarter of 2018, compared with RMB22.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB60.6 million in the first quarter of 2017. Basic and diluted earnings per ordinary share were RMB0.025 (US$0.004) and RMB0.024 (US$0.004), respectively during the first quarter of 2018. This translates into basic and diluted earnings per ADS of RMB0.100 (US$0.016) and RMB0.096 (US$0.016), respectively. Non-GAAP net income in the first quarter of 2018 was RMB11.0 million (US$1.7 million), compared with RMB41.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 and RMB80.0 million in the first quarter of 2017. Non-GAAP basic and diluted earnings per ordinary share were RMB0.075 (US$0.012) and RMB0.074 (US$0.012), respectively during the first quarter of 2018. This translates into non-GAAP basic and diluted earnings per ADS of RMB0.300 (US$0.048) and RMB0.296 (US$0.048), respectively. Financial Position As of March 31, 2018, the Company had RMB2.86 billion (US$456.6 million) in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, compared with RMB2.76 billion as of December 31, 2017. As of March 31, 2018, the Company’s accounts receivables due from third parties were RMB4.18 billion (US$667.0 million), compared with RMB4.50 billion as of December 31, 2017. As of March 31, 2018, the Company’s inventories were RMB4.71 billion (US$750.2 million), compared with RMB4.27 billion as of December 31, 2017. As of March 31, 2018, the Company's total interest-bearing debts were RMB8.38 billion (US$1.34 billion), compared with RMB7.43 billion as of December 31, 2017. First Quarter 2018 Operational Highlights Solar Module Shipments Total solar module shipments in the first quarter of 2018 were 2,015 MW, including 209 MW to be used in the Company’s overseas downstream solar projects. Solar Products Production Capacity As of March 31, 2018, the Company's in-house annual silicon wafer, solar cell and solar module production capacity was 9.0 GW, 5.0 GW and 9.0 GW, respectively. Recent Business Developments In March 2018, JinkoSolar and NextEra Energy announced a supply deal for millions of solar panels and that JinkoSolar will be opening its first U.S. factory in Jacksonville, Florida. In April 2018, JinkoSolar announced that it was named Energy Yield Simulation Winner - Polycrystalline Group at the 4th All Quality Matters Solar Congress hosted by TÜV Rhineland in Wuxi, China. In April 2018, JinkoSolar announced that it supplied solar modules for America's largest solar PV plant in Mexico. In April 2018, JinkoSolar announced that it signed a renewed credit agreement with HSBC (China) Co., Ltd. to increase its credit limit to $47 million from $25 million. In May 2018, JinkoSolar announced that its P-type monocrystalline cell broke the world record again with efficiency hitting 23.95% during certification testing done by the Photovoltaic and Wind Power Systems Quality Test Center at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). In May 2018, JinkoSolar announced that the 60P version of its P-type PV module peak power broke the world record again with power exceeding 370w and the N-type PV module peak power reaching 378.6w. Both records were certified by the TUV Rheinland (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. In May 2018, JinkoSolar announced that its entire portfolio of PV modules has passed the Potential Induced Degradation ("PID") resistance test under the conditions of 85 Degrees Celsius/85% relative humidity ("double 85") as required by TÜV Nord's IEC TS 62804-1 standards. Operations and Business Outlook Second Quarter and Full Year 2018 Guidance For the second quarter of 2018, the Company estimates total solar module shipments to be in the range of 2.4 GW to 2.5 GW. For the full year 2018, the Company estimates total solar module shipments to be in the range of 11.5 GW to 12 GW. Conference Call Information JinkoSolar's management will host an earnings conference call on Tuesday, June 26, 2018 at 8:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time (8:00 p.m. Beijing / Hong Kong the same day). Dial-in details for the earnings conference call are as follows: Hong Kong / International: +852 3027 6500 U.S. Toll Free: +1 855-824-5644 Passcode: 69300204# Please dial in 10 minutes before the call is scheduled to begin and provide the passcode to join the call. A telephone replay of the call will be available 2 hours after the conclusion of the conference call through 23:59 U.S. Eastern Time, July 3, 2018. The dial-in details for the replay are as follows: International: +61 2 8325 2405 U.S.: +1 646 982 0473 Passcode: 319292198# Additionally, a live and archived webcast of the conference call will be available on the Investor Relations section of JinkoSolar's website at www.jinkosolar.com.