First Solar, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2016 Financial Results

• Net sales of $934 million
• GAAP earnings per share of $0.13
• Non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.87
• Cash and marketable securities of $1.7 billion, net cash of $1.4 billion
• 1.4GWdc bookings year-to-date; 0.8GWdc of new bookings

First Solar, Inc. recently announced financial results for the second quarter of 2016. Net sales were $934 million in the quarter, an increase of $86 million from the prior quarter. The increase was due to higher module only sales, the sale of the Kingbird project and revenue recognition across multiple systems projects, partially offset by lower revenue from the Silver State South and Stateline projects which reached or neared completion in the quarter.

The Company reported second quarter earnings per share of $0.13, compared to $1.66 in the prior quarter. The second quarter was impacted by pre-tax restructuring charges of $86 million related primarily to the previously announced decision to end production of the TetraSun crystalline silicon product. Non-GAAP earnings per share, adjusted for TetraSun related charges, were $0.87. Net income was also lower versus the prior quarter due to the mix of systems projects sold and under construction and a gain on the sale of certain restricted investments in the first quarter. In addition, results for the second quarter excluded approximately $20 million of profit on the Kingbird sale, which was not recognized in earnings during the period.

Cash and marketable securities at the end of the second quarter decreased to $1.7 billion. Cash flows used in operations were $75 million in the second quarter.

“Our operational execution in 2016 continues to be strong and resulted in another quarter of solid financial results,” said Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar. “Our lead line module efficiency exited the quarter at over 16.6%, and we further lowered our module cost per watt. We sold our Kingbird project in Q2, and our steady execution across our portfolio of systems projects resulted in significant cost reductions. With our recent decision to reallocate capacity to focus on our Series 5 assembly capabilities we continue to position the Company for future success.”

The Company updated its 2016 earnings per share guidance and updated other forecasted items as follows:

2016 Guidance  Prior GAAP  Current GAAP  Current Non-GAAPNet Sales  $3.8B to $4.0B  Unchanged   Gross Margin %  18% to 19%  18.5% to 19%   Operating Expenses  $380M to $400M  $485M to $520M  $380M to $400MOperating Income  $300M to $370M  $205M to $250M  $310M to $370MEffective Tax Rate  16% to 18%  4% to 6%  16% to 18%Earnings per Share¹  $4.10 to $4.50  $3.65 to $3.90  $4.20 to $4.50Net Cash Balance²  $1.9B to $2.2B  Unchanged   Operating Cash Flow³  $500M to $700M

$500M to $650M

   Capital Expenditures  $300M to $400M  $275M to $325M   Shipments  2.9GW to 3.0GW  Unchanged

Includes a gain of approximately $145 million, net of tax, from the expected sale of an equity method investment and our share of 8point3 earnings and a gain in other income of approximately $20 million, net of tax, from the sale of restricted investments in Q1 2016

Defined as cash and marketable securities less expected debt at the end of 2016

Excludes approximately $320 million from the expected sale of an equity method investment treated as an investing cash flow
For a reconciliation of non-GAAP measures to measures presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. (“GAAP”), see the table below.

First Solar has scheduled a conference call for today, Aug 3, 2016 at 4:30 p.m. ET to discuss this announcement. A live webcast of this conference call is available at http://investor.firstsolar.com/events.cfm.

An audio replay of the conference call will also be available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call. The audio replay will remain available until Aug 10, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. ET and can be accessed by dialing 888-203-1112 if you are calling from within the United States or 719-457-0820 if you are calling from outside the United States and entering the replay pass code 1037324. A replay of the webcast will be available on the Investors section of the Company’s website approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call and remain available for approximately 90 calendar days.