DGAP-News: SMA Solar Technology AG / Key word(s): Forecast/Preliminary Results SMA Solar Technology AG: SMA Solar Technology AG Generates Sales Record in 2016 and Substantially Increases Operating Earnings According to Provisional Figures 26.01.2017 / 11:43 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SMA Solar Technology AG - Corporate News SMA Solar Technology AG Generates Sales Record in 2016 and Substantially Increases Operating Earnings According to Provisional Figures New Products and Digital Energy Management Set to Improve Profitability in the medium term Niestetal, January 26, 2017 - SMA Solar Technology AG (SMA/FWB: S92) generated a sales record in 2016 with more than 8 GW of inverter output sold (2015: 7.3 GW). According to provisional estimates by the Managing Board, SMA generated sales of more than EUR940 million in continuing operations in 2016 (pro-forma 2015: EUR981.8 million) and substantially increased operating earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to approximately EUR65 million (pro-forma 2015: EUR43.3 million) despite an unexpectedly sharp decline in average selling prices of nearly 20%. Sales and operating earnings are in line with the Managing Board's forecast. For the fiscal year 2017, the SMA Managing Board expects the continued high price pressure as well as market and segment shifts to reduce sales to between EUR830 million and EUR900 million. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) are expected to decline to between EUR70 million and EUR90 million. According to estimates by the Managing Board, SMA will generate high operating cash flow thanks to its attractive business model and increase net cash to more than EUR400 million in 2017. At tomorrow's Capital Markets Day, the SMA Managing Board will present new products and innovative solutions for the digitization of the energy industry, which will lead to an improvement in profitability and a sustainable boost to SMA's competitiveness from 2018 onward. "In 2016, SMA continued successfully on the path to more profit and higher cash flow. SMA has been the global market leader for more than two decades in one of the most exciting industries of the 21st century. Through enormous technological progress, photovoltaics is now one of the most efficient energy carriers and will therefore push environmentally damaging coal-fired power generation out of the energy mix over the next few years," said SMA CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon. "Future energy generation will be decentralized, renewable and digital. This will provide attractive opportunities for specialists in environmental and communication technology. SMA will use digital energy management to create transparency of energy flows across various sectors, such as photovoltaics, heating and e-mobility, and to optimize total energy costs at the local level. With our innovation, we are breaking new technological ground and entering strategic partnerships in a targeted way. With its future service range, SMA will make photovoltaics an integral component of the new energy market." Due to the high price pressure, the SMA Managing Board forecasts sales of EUR830 million to EUR900 million and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of EUR70 million to EUR90 million for the current fiscal year. Net cash will rise to more than EUR400 million thanks to high operating cash flow. "The fiscal year 2017 will certainly not be easy for SMA," explained Pierre-Pascal Urbon. "We have already demonstrated on several occasions in the past that we can counter the enormous price pressure in our industry with technical innovation and the systematic reduction of fixed costs. At tomorrow's Capital Markets Day, we will therefore present the new products and services with which we will increase SMA's cross margin from 2018 onward. In addition, we will provide information about the market and competitive situation and our strategic direction." The presentation on Capital Markets Day containing additional information can be found at http://www.sma.de/en/investor-relations/publications/ presentations.html from the beginning of the event. SMA will publish the complete consolidated financial statements for 2016 on March 30, 2017. About SMA The SMA Group with anticipated sales of about EUR1 billion in 2016 is the global market leader for solar inverters, a key component of all PV plants, and offers innovative key technologies for future power supply structures. It is headquartered in Niestetal, near Kassel, Germany, and is represented in 20 countries. The Group employs more than 3,000 people worldwide. SMA has an extensive range of products, which offers the right inverters for all module types and plant sizes; for small residential systems as well as large-scale plants, grid-connected photovoltaic systems as well as off-grid and hybrid systems. Moreover, SMA offers system technology for various battery technologies and system sizes and collaborates with renowned battery manufacturers and companies from the automotive industry. The SMA technology is protected by about 700 patents and utility models worldwide. The range of services is supplemented by comprehensive services and operational management of large-scale PV power plants. Since 2008, the Group's parent company, SMA Solar Technology AG, has been listed on the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (S92) and is currently the only company in the solar industry that is listed in the TecDAX index. SMA Solar Technology AG Sonnenallee 1 34266 Niestetal Germany Head of Corporate Communications: Anja Jasper Tel. +49 561 9522-2805 [email protected] Press Contact: Susanne Henkel Manager Corporate Press Tel. +49 561 9522-1124 Fax +49 561 9522-421400 [email protected] Disclaimer: This corporate news serves only as information and does not constitute an offer or invitation to subscribe for, acquire, hold or sell any securities of SMA Solar Technology AG (the "Company") or any present or future subsidiary of the Company (together with the Company, the "SMA Group") nor should it form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract to purchase or subscribe for any securities in the Company or any member of the SMA Group or commitment whatsoever. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States of America absent registration or an exemption from registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended. This corporate news can contain future-oriented statements. Future-oriented statements are statements which do not describe facts of the past. They also include statements about our assumptions and expectations. These statements are based on plans, estimations and forecasts which the Managing Board of SMA Solar Technology AG (SMA or company) has available at this time. Future-oriented statements are therefore only valid on the day on which they are made. Future-oriented statements by nature contain risks and elements of uncertainty. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors can lead to considerable differences between the actual results, the financial position, the development or the performance of the corporation and the estimates given here. These factors include those which SMA has discussed in published reports. These reports are available on the SMA website at www.SMA.de. The company accepts no obligation whatsoever to update these future-oriented statements or to adjust them to future events or developments. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 26.01.2017 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Archive at www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: SMA Solar Technology AG Sonnenallee 1 34266 Niestetal Germany Phone: +49 (0)561 / 9522 - 0 Fax: +49 (0)561 / 9522 - 100 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: http://www.sma.de ISIN: DE000A0DJ6J9 WKN: A0DJ6J Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange End of News DGAP News Service --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 539255 26.01.2017