Investing

Enphase Energy Witnesses Significant Unusual Options Volume

Joshua Enomoto

Published: February 9, 2023 10:46 pm

Following a strong earnings report disclosed on Feb. 7, solar technology specialist Enphase Energy (US:ENPH) aims to regain upside momentum. Although one of the top performers during an otherwise brutal cycle in 2022, ENPH stock got off to a less-than-auspicious start to the new year. Since the January opener, ENPH stock fell 13.6% through the Feb. 8 session.

Nevertheless, Wall Street came away impressed with Enphase’s fourth quarter of 2022 earnings results. According to the company’s press release, the solar energy firm shipped over 4.87 million microinverters and 122.1 megawatt hours of Enphase IQ Batteries. These events contributed to record quarterly revenue of $724.7 million, representing an increase of 14% compared to Q3 2022’s tally.

Additionally, GAAP gross margin hit 42.9%, while its non-GAAP counterpart hit 43.8%. Operating income on a GAAP basis reached $157 million. On the other hand, non-GAAP operating income jumped to $229.4 million.

In terms of per-share profitability, GAAP diluted earnings per share registered as $1.06. On a non-GAAP basis, diluted EPS hit $1.51.

Looking ahead, by the end of Q1 2023, management anticipates “[r]evenue to be within a range of $700 million to $740 million, which includes shipments of 100 to 120 megawatt hours of Enphase IQ Batteries.” As well, Enphase forecasts that GAAP gross margin to be within a range of 40% to 43%. For non-GAAP gross margin, this metric should range between 41% to 44%.

Notably, Fintel’s screener for unusual stock options volume revealed budding enthusiasm for ENPH stock. During the Feb. 8 session, call volume hit 129,412 contracts versus the average call volume of 32,182. On the other side of the equation, put volume reached 60,095 contracts against the average put volume of 23,909.

Although ENPH stock hasn’t yet delivered the magnitude of performance that its underlying earnings results imply, Fintel points out that the solar specialist enjoys strong institutional support. Per Fintel’s Fund Sentiment Score, ENPH registered 79.65 out of 100. Higher numbers indicate a higher level of accumulation to its peers, with 50 being the average.

Moreover, the broader solar energy industry recently received a vote of confidence from the International Energy Agency, which stated that the rise of wind and solar production will mitigate the emissions impact stemming from overall greater energy use.

“The good news is that renewables and nuclear power are growing quickly enough to meet almost all this additional appetite, suggesting we are close to a tipping point for power sector emissions,” IEA director Faith Birol said, per a Reuters report.

This article originally appeared on Fintel