Lets analyze the Q3 results of Canadian Solar (CSIQ) today.Canadian Solar has emerged as a star performer. Not only did it gave good results this quarter, the company has given good returns in the past too. The company is based in China hence enjoys strong government support there. CSIQ has presence across US, Japan and other markets like Latin America, Brazil and Africa. The company has a strong presence in the system development business and is also a supplier of solar modules. Read more about Canadian Solar modules. Canadian Solar works across all three segments – residential, commercial and utility. All these factors make Canadian Solar a good solar company, though it has fear from competition like Jinko Solar (JKS) working on similar lines.

Canadian Solar Q3 2014 Results

The company gave a decent set of result in its third quarter, beating its previous guidance:

i) Revenue – Revenues amounted to $914.4 million in Q3 2014, increasing by 46.6% from $623.8 million in Q2 2014 and by 86.3% from $490.9 million in Q3 2013. Q3 2014 revenues beat company’s guidance of $760-$810 million.

ii) Shipment – The company shipped 770 MW in Q3 2014, increasing by 19% from 646 MW in Q2 2014 and by 61% from 478 MW in Q3 2013. The current shipment beat its earlier estimate of 720-750 MW.

iii) Gross Margin – The gross margin for the current quarter stood at 22.9%, as against 19% in Q2 2014. GW beat the guidance of 19-21%.

iv) Net income – the net income was $104.2 million for Q3 2014 as compared to $55.8 million in Q2 2014.

v) EPS – Earning per diluted share was $1.75 as against $0.95 per diluted share in Q2 2014.

vi) Cash – The company closed Q3 2014, reporting a strong cash balance of $817.2 million, compared to $788.3 million at the end of the second quarter of 2014.

vii) Debt – Short-term borrowings and long-term debt were $718.1 million and $146.7 million respectively at Q3 2014 end, compared to $876.3 million and $150.1 million respectively at the end of Q2 2014.

Source: Canadian Solar Press Release

Outlook

Shipment – The shipment is expected to be in the range of 810-860 MW and 2.73-2.78 GW for Q4 2014 and full year respectively.

Revenues – The revenues are estimated to be around $925-975 million and $2.93-2.98 billion for Q4 2014 and full year respectively.

Capacity Expansion – The company plans to increase its solar module capacity by 500 MW and increase its cell capacity and ingot and wafer capacity to 1.9 GW and  400 MW in the next year.