Tag Archives: earnings

Canadian Solar Beats Q1 Views; Yingli Ducks SunEd Bankruptcy Path

Canadian Solar ( CSIQ ) stock rocketed Wednesday on an across-the-board Q1 beat, as fellow solar panel-maker Yingli Green Energy Holding ( YGE ) announced it can’t repay 1.7 billion yuan ($263 million) in loans due Thursday. Yingli also reported fiscal Q4 sales and module shipments that missed Wall Street views, but better-than-expected losses. Canadian Solar stock, which touched an eight-month low Tuesday, was up 13% in morning trading Wednesday, near 17.50. Yingli stock, which has traded below 5 all year, was up a fraction in morning trading on the stock market today . IBD’s 20-company Energy-Solar industry group, which hit a three-year low Tuesday, was up 2.5% on Canadian Solar’s Q1 beat. And Chinese solar manufacturers JinkoSolar ( JKS ), Trina Solar ( TSL ) and JA Solar ( JASO ) were up 5%, 4% and 2.5%, respectively, on Yingli’s report. For Q1, Canadian Solar reported $721.4 million in sales and 39 cents earnings per share ex items, down a respective 16% and 62.5% vs. the year-earlier quarter, the fourth straight quarter of declines for both metrics. Still, both measures topped the consensus of 10 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters for $663.7 million and 14 cents. Canadian Solar reported 1.198 gigawatts in module shipments, down 3%, but beating its own views for 1.085 GW to 1.135 GW. Current-quarter guidance for $710 million to $760 million would be up 15% at the midpoint and beats the consensus for $702.4 million. Module shipments were guided up 44% vs. the year-earlier quarter to 1.2 GW to 1.25 GW. Yingli Debts Under Negotiation Yingli said early Wednesday it’s negotiating with creditors to restructure its medium-term loans which mature Thursday. The company is also “negotiating privately with potential strategic investors” and considering selling assets to improve its debt-to-equity ratio. Potential asset sales include land-use rights for which subsidiary Hainan Yingli received 265 million yuan ($40.8 million) in 2015 and expects the balance of 470 million yuan $72.3 million) this year. The company has reported year-over-year quarterly losses since December 2011. Its loan negotiations follow a month after giant U.S. solar developer SunEdison filed for bankruptcy after technically defaulting — unless extensions were granted — on $725 million in second-lien loans. For its fiscal Q4 ended Dec. 31, Yingli reported $325.7 million in sales and a 71-cent per-share loss ex items. Sales fell 41% year over year, but losses shrank from a $4.90 per-share loss in the year-earlier quarter. The consensus modeled $372.3 million and a $1.48 per-share loss ex items. Yingli wrapped up fiscal 2015 with $1.54 billion in sales, down 26%, and a $1.98 per-share loss minus items vs. $12.10 in year-ago losses. Analysts expected $1.63 billion and a $31.30 per-share loss. On a year-over-year basis, module shipments for fiscal Q4 and the year fell 51% and 27%, respectively, to 460.4 megawatts and 2.45 GW. For the current quarter, Yingli guided to 480 MW to 510 MW in module shipments, down 34% at the midpoint. Wall Street view $414.4 million in fiscal Q1 sales, down 12%, and a $1.11 per-share loss ex items, shrinking from $3.60 in the year-earlier quarter.

Solid Q1 Earnings Fail To Boost Pharma ETFs

Like the past several quarters, the healthcare sector has impressed with strong Q1 earnings. This is especially true as total earnings for 79.2% of the sector’s total market capitalization are up 8.8% on revenue growth of 11.2%, with earnings and revenue beat ratios of 80% and 70%, respectively. In fact, healthcare is the fourth best performing sector in terms of earnings growth trailing autos, construction, and consumer discretionary. Among the most notable players, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ ) was the first major drug company to report earnings on April 19, followed by Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY ) and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY ) on April 26 and April 28, respectively. Two other major U.S. drug companies – Pfizer (NYSE: PFE ) and Merck (NYSE: MRK ) – reported on May 3 and May 5, respectively. These industry primes posted solid results raising their full-year outlook that boosted investors’ confidence in the space. Notably, Eli Lilly missed our earnings estimates while Merck lagged on the revenue front. Johnson and Johnson Earnings in Focus The world’s biggest maker of healthcare products continued its long streak of earnings beat and beat our estimate on the top line buoyed by strong prescription drug revenues and a weakening dollar. Earnings per share came in at $1.68, four cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate and 7.7% higher than the year-ago earnings. Revenues inched up 0.6% year over year to $17.5 billion and edged past the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $17.42 billion (read: Healthcare ETFs to Buy on Blockbuster J&J Q1 Results ). Johnson & Johnson raised its guidance for fiscal 2016. The company now expects revenues in the range of $71.2-$71.9 billion compared with the previous forecast of $70.8-$71.5 billion. Additionally, the earnings per share guidance has been raised from $6.43-$6.58 to $6.53-$6.68. The Zacks Consensus Estimate at the time of the earnings release was pegged at $71.5 billion for revenues and $6.52 for earnings per share. These were higher than the mid-point of the company’s projection. JNJ has gained 0.2% to date since its earnings announcement. Pfizer Earnings in Focus The U.S. drug giant also topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate for both the top and the bottom lines, and raised the guidance for fiscal 2016. Earnings per share of 67 cents and revenues of $13.0 billion were ahead of our estimates by 12 cents and $1.0 billion, respectively. Notably, earnings per share grew 32% while revenues jumped 20% year over year. For fiscal 2016, Pfizer upped its revenue guidance to $51-53 billion from $49-$51 billion and earnings per share guidance to $2.38-$2.48 from $2.20-$2.30. The mid-points were much higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $51.3 billion for revenues and $2.29 for earnings per share at the time of the earnings release. Shares of PFE are down 0.4% since the earnings announcement. Merck Earnings in Focus Earnings per share came in at 89 cents, four cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate and 4.7% higher than the year-ago earnings. Revenues slipped 1.2% year over year to $9.3 billion, and were slightly below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.5 billion. Merck now expects earnings per share in the range of $3.65-$3.77 and revenues in the band of $39.0-$40.2 billion for 2016. This is in contrast with the previous guidance of $3.60-$3.75 and $38.7-$40.2 billion, respectively. The Zacks Consensus Estimate at the time of the release was pegged at $3.71 for earnings per share and $40.1 billion for revenues. The stock has lost about 1.3% following its earnings announcement. Bristol-Myers Earnings in Focus Bristol-Myers reported earnings per share of 74 cents, outpacing our estimate by 8 cents and increasing 4% from the year-ago quarter. Also, revenues rose 9% to $4.39 billion and edged past the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.24 billion. Like the other drug makers, the company also revised its earnings per share outlook upward to $2.50-$2.60 from $2.30-$2.40 for fiscal 2016. The low end was much higher than our estimate of $2.42 at the time of the earnings announcement. Revenues are expected to grow in the low double-digit range. Shares of BMY are down 1.5% to date since the earnings announcement. Eli Lilly Earnings in Focus Earnings of 83 cents at Eli Lilly missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a couple of cents and came in 5% lower than the year-ago earnings. Revenues grew 5% to $4.86 billion but fell short of our estimate of $4.87 billion. However, Eli Lilly raised its 2016 earnings per share guidance to $3.50-$3.60 from $3.45-$3.55 and revenue guidance to $20.6-$21.1 billion from $20.2-$20.7 billion. The Zacks Consensus Estimate at the time of the earnings release was pegged at $3.55 for earnings and $20.7 billion for revenues. Shares of LLY have tumbled 3.41% since the earnings release. ETF Angle The string of earnings beat and upbeat outlook failed to boost pharma stocks and ETFs as the industry is grappling with drug pricing issues. Below, we have highlighted the ETFs in detail: PowerShares Dynamic Pharmaceuticals Portfolio ETF (NYSEARCA: PJP ) This is by far the most popular choice in the pharma space that follows the Dynamic Pharmaceuticals Intellidex Index. The product has AUM of about $1.1 billion and sees good volume of around 192,000 shares a day. The fund charges 56 bps in fees and expenses from investors. Holding 23 stocks, the fund invests over 5% share each in the in-focus five firms. The ETF shed about 7.4% over the past 10 days and has a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 or ‘Hold’ rating with a High risk outlook. iShares U.S. Pharmaceuticals ETF (NYSEARCA: IHE ) This ETF provides exposure to 42 pharma stocks by tracking the Dow Jones U.S. Select Pharmaceuticals Index. The in-focus firms occupy the top five holdings in the basket accounting for combined 40.6% of total assets, suggesting heavy concentration. The product has $607.8 million in AUM and charges 45 bps in fees and expense. Volume is moderate as it exchanges about 52,000 shares a day. The fund has lost 7.9% over the past 10 days and has a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 with a Medium risk outlook. SPDR S&P Pharmaceuticals ETF (NYSEARCA: XPH ) This fund provides exposure to the pharma companies by tracking the S&P Pharmaceuticals Select Industry Index. With AUM of over $465.9 million, it trades in moderate volume of around 190,000 shares a day and charges 35 bps in fees a year. In total, the product holds 40 securities with the in-focus five firms taking nearly 5% share each. The product was down 9.73% in the same period and has a Zacks ETF Rank of 3 with a Medium risk outlook. Market Vectors Pharmaceutical ETF (NYSEARCA: PPH ) This ETF follows the MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index and holds 26 stocks in its basket. Pfizer, Bristol-Myers, Johnson & Johnson and Merck make up for over 5% share each while Eli Lilly accounts for 4.7% of assets. The product has amassed $261.3 million in its asset base and trades in a moderate volume of about 105,000 shares a day. Expense ratio came in at 0.36%. The fund has lost 5.3% over the past 10 days. It has a Zacks ETF Rank of 2 or ‘Buy’ rating with a Medium risk outlook. Link to the original post on Zacks.com

What Is In Store For These Utility ETFs This Earnings Season?

The utility sector appears to be in great shape as chances of the Fed hiking rates in the near term have dropped significantly after Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s dovish comments, which were further reinforced by Federal Bank of New York President William C. Dudley. Dudley said that due to the uncertain U.S. economic outlook, a cautious and gradual approach to interest rate increases is expected. This raised the appeal for utility stocks, which offer solid dividend payouts and excellent capital appreciation over the longer term. Further, thanks to the sector’s low correlation with the market, huge swings in the stock market don’t have any effect on utility stocks. The utility sector is thus considered a defensive play or safe haven in turbulent times. Uncertainty over rate hikes, weaknesses in the global economy and mixed domestic data have benefited the sector. In fact, utility ETFs saw smooth trading, with the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSEARCA: XLU ), the Vanguard Utilities ETF (NYSEARCA: VPU ), the iShares U.S. Utilities ETF (NYSEARCA: IDU ) and the Fidelity MSCI Utilities Index ETF (NYSEARCA: FUTY ) gaining over 10% each in the last three months (as of April 25, 2016). Investors must be interested to know how the sector might be performing in the first-quarter 2016 earnings season to help them make an investment decision. Although utility stocks are yet to report, as per the Zacks Earnings Trend report, it is one of the few sectors that are expected to show earnings growth in the quarter. Utilities are expected to post earnings growth of 5.3% in the first quarter compared with a decline of 1.6% in fourth-quarter 2015. However, just looking at the overall sector outlook is not enough. Let’s also look at how the individual stocks to which the utility ETFs have significant exposure are expected to perform. We have highlighted the earnings prediction for some of these companies below: Zacks Surprise Prediction Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE: DUK ) has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and an Earnings ESP of -1.74%, making a beat unlikely. Also, the earnings surprise track over the past four quarters is not good, with a negative average surprise of 1.72%. Meanwhile, the company witnessed downward earnings estimate revision of 1 cent over the past 7 days for the yet-to-be-reported quarter. The stock has a VGM of ‘C’. The company will report on May 3, before market opens. DUK has a weight of 8.3%, 7.3%, 7.5% and 7.2% in XLU, VPU, IDU and FUTY, respectively. NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE ) is expected to release its earnings report on April 28 before market opens. It has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) but an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, again putting the odds of a beat against it. The company also saw downward earnings estimate revision of a penny over the past 7 days for the to-be-reported quarter. It delivered positive earnings surprises in three of the last four quarters, with an average beat of 4.28%. Further, the stock has a VGM score of ‘C’. NEE has 9%, 7.1%, 7.5% and 7.3% weight in XLU, VPU, IDU and FUTY, respectively. Dominion Resources, Inc. (NYSE: D ) has a Zacks Rank #3 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, making an earnings prediction difficult. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first quarter 2016 is 96 cents, down 1 cent over the past seven days. Further, the stock has an unfavorable VGM score of D. The company is expected to report before market opens on May 4. D has a weight of 7.1%, 5.8%, 6% and 5.7% in XLU, VPU, IDU and FUTY, respectively. Original Post