SunPower Grew Customer Base & Net Income In 2022

• SunPower exited 2022 with its revenues having gone up 53% annually while Q4/2022 revenues jumped 43% YoY
• New homes segment remains profitable but anticipating a slowdown this year, the company is expanding its focus to multifamily dwellings and to markets outside California
• To ensure enough supply, it has expanded module supply deal with Maxeon and also roped in Hanwha Qcells to supply locally produced products

US residential solar installer SunPower Corporation reported a healthy 2022 with 53% annual growth in GAAP revenues and growing its net income manifold to $102.4 million, up from $6.1 million, while also striking module supply deals with Maxeon Solar Technologies and Hanwha as it builds up domestic supplies.

In 2022, the company grew its adjusted EBITDA by 26% YoY to $95 million and added 83,000 new customers, including 23,700 in Q4/2022. The last quarter of the year saw the company adding 43% more revenues annually with $497 million.

SunPower CEO Peter Faricy pointed at the growing tribe of consumers interested in full home electrification, spurred by new incentives to explain the growth of residential solar in the US.

In the new homes segment, it counts having achieved record installations in Q4/2022 and has a backlog of 34,000 in the backlog. Another 19,000 retrofit customers are also in the backlog, it added. Management is also focusing on multifamily and non-California markets anticipating a slowdown in the new homes segment due to slower economic environment impacting the homebuilding industry.

Its guidance for 2023 assumes a 25% annual decline in overall new homes sales versus last year.

According to Faricy, "NH (new homes) remains profitable. Operating expense reduction and updated supply arrangements are expected to impact financial results in 2024, helping to offset the impact from slower installs."

New contracts

Maxeon, with whom the company is already procuring IBC solar panels, has been contracted by the company to supply 'significant additional quantities' through 2024/25. SunPower has also revealed an agreement with Hanwha Qcells to provide it with locally produced Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) bonus tax-credit applicable modules from the latter's Dalton, Georgia fab.

SunPower said it will add more domestic suppliers to its vendor list in 2024 and beyond, to meet growing demand.

Among other significant deals that will define the company's business in 2023 include a collaboration with GM to design and develop bi-directional EV charging equipment. SunPower will also be the exclusive solar provider for GM customers and preferred installation partner for EV chargers.

The installer also plans to launch an upgrade of its SunVault storage platform that integrates storage, hub, monitoring and AC/DC panels, in H2/2024. Management says the company has sufficient SunVault storage inventories for 2023 that it can supply at low-double-digit attach rates. It is now securing additional supplies for 2023/24.

Outlook

While the management has not provided any specific guidance for Q1/2023, it says in 2023 it expects to report $2,450-$2,900 adjusted EBITDA per customer before platform investment and 90,000-110,000 incremental customers, resulting in $125-$155 million Adjusted EBITDA for the year.

Faricy summed up the company's plans for 2023 as, "Among our many advancements this year, we plan to launch a bi-directional charging product through our collaboration with GM and introduce more of their customers to solar; roll out our work with OhmConnect as well as add more Virtual Power Plant (VPP) offerings that enable customers to save more money while helping improve grid stability; expand our multifamily footprint; make more enhancements to SunVault storage; and elevate the digital experience to make it easier than ever to switch to solar."