3SOF

looking for a trend reversal and this to test 70 once again.

See news
LDK Solar to Supply Wafers to Canadian Solar Over 3 Years for $534 Million

dropping w/ vol covered, up w/o vol. according to textbook, it is strong buy.
LDK could go up 30% in one day. let's watch out BIDU's ER first, it will start Q2 chinese stock play.

LDK over 38$ waits patiently for audit resolution in the matter of it´s silicon inventories /probably next week we will see great run there.

LDK had good news today.

link: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071115/ldk_solar_investigation.html?.v=1
AP
LDK Updates Inventories Probe
Thursday November 15, 10:02 am ET
LDK to Report Polysilicon Inventory Investigation Results in Early December

SUNNYVALE, Calif. (AP) -- LDK Solar Co. said Thursday it expects to report findings from its investigation into whether it misstated polysilicon inventories in early December and will issue its delayed third-quarter earnings report "shortly thereafter."

The company launched the probe after its former financial controller, Charley Situ, accused LDK of reporting inflated figures for silicon feedstock. The Securities and Exchange Commission and New York Stock Exchange are also investigating the company's polysilicon inventories.

LDK repeated its statement that the allegations "had no merit."

Polysilicon is a key component of solar-energy products and has become increasingly expensive amid high demand.

LDK shares rose $2.54, or 8.7 percent, to $31.79 in morning trading.



This is a relief for SOLF shareholders as their long-term silicon contracts are from LDK.  SOLF should see a nice pop when this is finalized. 

NEW RECOMMENDATION: LDK SOLAR (LDK)

Let's start with the first of our two new solar buys, which is a Chinese silicon wafer maker whose stock recently had an overblown sell-off and is in a good position to soar as photovoltaic (PV) production in China is only just beginning to ramp up.

We have been following this story for more than a year, but it was only when the company was accused of inventory miscalculations -- and the stock tanked 60% -- that we really took notice.

In effect, LDK Solar (LDK) is the MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR) of China. LDK has been producing silicon wafers for solar-cell manufacturers since 2005, and it manufactures both the polysilicon ingots and the wafers used in PV manufacturing.

The explosion in demand for polysilicon wafers has rocketed WFR up 250% since we first recommended it under $20 two years ago. Last week it traded above $80 and it's now at $76.

Between June and September 2007, LDK shares exploded from $24 to $74. Then came the recent accusations from a former employee of poor accounting of inventory, and within weeks the stock was cut down to $30. This is gives us another chance to make our move and we're moving now -- and here are the primary reasons:

First, in our conversations with other CFOs in Chinese companies, we're told that it's very common in China for a fired professional (in this case, the assistant controller was axed) to claim that the mother ship company is a mess. Their advice is to take this "drama" with a very large grain of salt.

Secondly, an audit of polysilicon inventory will soon be ready. Based on solid intelligence, we expect to see a clean slate. The company has already upped earnings and revenue guidance for Q4 2007 and Q1 2008, and that tells us LDK management is not going to be making significant write-downs of inventory.

Thirdly, at a 12 P/E ratio, LDK is selling at a fraction of WFR's valuation metrics, yet it is growing almost twice as fast.

Finally, LDK sells to the major Chinese PV manufacturer Suntech Power (STP), as well as other Chinese solar companies. Based on the robust outlook for demand, LDK has a huge new plant coming on line next year to double output.

Last week, LDK reported that it has secured an additional 312 metric tons in polysilicon supplies for 2008. LDKalso confirmed that it is on schedule to reach its capacity goal of up to 6,000 metric tons in Q4 2008.

We anticipate $1 billion in sales for 2008 with an EPS of $2.25. Based on these numbers, we should see LDK shares at $70 or better by the end of 2008. On the downside, we could see $25 if there are any surprises regarding inventory.

We'll take those odds any time, so buy LDK under $35 for your Emerging Game-Over Dominator portfolio and collect some "poly profits." The Strong Buy Under is $32 and the Accumulate price is $37.

Solar Sees Increased Attention
on Energy Bill
Tuesday's session saw continued talk of Fed rate cuts, financials
seeing increased selling pressure, speculation regarding
gaming consolidation, and solar names on the rise again. This
alternate energy sector saw a barrage of news from many located
in the China market which spilled over into a sympathy
related rally for the whole space.
Solarfun Power Holding Company Limited (SOLF) began the rally when shares gained over 39%
following news that the Company had reached an agreement with Good Energies Inc., a renewable
energy investor, to sell some 66.7 million ordinary shares and 281,011 American Depository
Shares to the investor. Included in the investment were almost 50% of the shares held by
SOLF's chairman and CEO, Yonghua Lu. It was noted that Lu would retain a 16.1% stake in the
Company. The deal effectively raises Good Energies' holdings to 34.7% from only 6.3% of the
Company before the deal. It also will allow Good Energies to have additional control of the board
of directors.
The deal left some investors worrying about the CEO's faith in the Company. There aren't many
instances of CEO's liquidating 50% of their holdings. Even rarer was the security gaining over
40%.
Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) also was in on the action as speculation circulated of a potential
partnership circulated the floors. The Company has been highlighted a few times with their growing
top line and more recently by raising $75 million in a 144A private placement. Shares gained
some 17% on the day with over 5 million shares traded.
LDK Solar Co Ltd (LDK) shares saw a 31% increase on Tuesday. The Company had become
embattled in an inventory disagreement with a former employee. Shares had seen their price fall
from highs of over $75 in late September to lows in the $26 area in late November. On November
15th the Company announced guidance for sales of $165 to $170 million. Earnings were
expected to be between 37c and 41c.
No official news had been reported over the past few days but a story circulated that noted the
Company had raised some $700 million in debt and had retained all of their customers throughout
the inventory discrepancy. The Company earlier had noted that the investigation into inventories
reporting had continued. They were expected to announce their findings in early December. With
that on the horizon, the shares could see additional attention.
Also contributing to the heightened attention to the sector was the proposed energy bill. The
legislation was seen as a negative catalyst last month as news that the Democrats were proposing
a stripping out of alternative energy tax cuts to gain favor of the Republicans to override any
presidential veto. With the bill possibly being on the agenda in the coming days, investors would
certainly be wise to watch many in the solar area.

LDK Started Construction of Polysilicon Plant
Wednesday, December 05, 2007 09:22ET

XINYU, Dec 05, 2007 (SinoCast via COMTEX) -- LDK Solar Co., Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) announced on December 3, 2007 that it had started the construction of a polysilicon plant in Xinyu, Jiangxi Province in Southern China.

The plant is scheduled to complete construction at the end of 2008 and will be capable of producing 6,000 tons of polysilicon, a key raw material in producing solar cells, a year. The company said before that it planned to enlarge its production capacity to 15,000 tons of solar grade silicon in 2009. The aforesaid plant is said to be part of the expansion.

In addition, the company said that it had won an order of supplying 312 tons of polysilicon.

LDK is the one of the largest polysilicon producers in Asia. It went public on the New York Stock Exchange June 2007 and raised USD 486 million via its initial public offering. The company estimated that it would gain revenue of USD 165-170 million in the forth quarter of this year.

&

I bought some LDK today at 48.03, just as it was breaking support.  Oh well.

I'd love to complete this position in the lower 40s.  I think this is the floor, LDK is far too cheap imo!

Brought my average buy price down to about 46 from 48 buying a little bit more today at 43.  I think this is a $100...$150 stock. Got hammered way too much for earnings, they made $0.37 and look at their growth prospects for the next couple years that la-onda has highlighted!

Opinions on this?

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/h?s=LDK

Catching up some today...

LDK Solar Updates 4Q08 and 2009 Outlook

SUNNYVALE, Calif. and XINYU CITY, China, Jan 05, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- LDK Solar Co., Ltd. (LDK, Trade), a manufacturer of multicrystalline solar wafers, today provided an updated outlook for the fourth quarter of 2008. Based upon preliminary data for the fourth quarter, LDK Solar estimates revenue to be in the range of $425 to $435 million and wafer shipments between 245 to 255 MW and gross margin between 10% and 13%. This compares to its previously issued guidance for the fourth quarter of 2008 of revenue in the range of $555 to $565 million and wafer shipments in the range of 260 to 270 MW, and gross margin between 18% and 21%. Our capacity reached 1,460 MW at the end of 2008.

During the fourth quarter of 2008, LDK Solar experienced lower demand as customers requested to delay shipments until 2009 in light of the current global economic crisis and tight credit markets. The decrease in overall wafer shipments during the quarter was partially offset by much higher than expected OEM wafer shipments. The company also announced that it experienced a delay in ramping production at its 1,000 MT polysilicon plant due to issues in the final stages of plant commissioning. While the optimization process has taken longer than expected, the plant is currently in production, and is expected to ramp up to its designed full capacity in mid 2009. Construction of the 15,000 MT polysilicon plant remains on schedule and the Company expects to commence silicon production in this facility during the second quarter of 2009.

As a result of these dynamics affecting the global business environment, LDK Solar expects 2009 fiscal year results to be impacted by lower ASPs and lower wafer shipment volumes than previously anticipated. The company's updated outlook for the full year of fiscal 2009 is as follows:


 
    -- Revenue to be in the range of $2.3 billion to $2.5 billion; 
    -- Wafer shipments in the range of 1.57 GW to 1.67 GW; 
    -- Annualized wafer production capacity to be 2.3 GW by the end of 2009; 
    -- Gross margin between 22% and 27%; and 
    -- Production of between 3,000 and 5,000 MT of polysilicon in 2009. 

"Late in the fourth quarter, we experienced a slowdown in our business related to the current global financial crisis," stated Xiaofeng Peng, Chairman and CEO of LDK Solar. "Despite a difficult operating environment, we remain focused on executing our growth strategy and believe that our competitive positioning as the largest and lowest-cost wafer producers in the solar industry will provide us with a competitive edge for navigating through these challenging times. We continue to have a solid cash position, with more than $380 million, in addition to unused credit facilities totaling in excess of $850 million and will continue to conservatively manage our resources. Our operations remain at full capacity, with contract backlog remaining strong for 2009."

The business outlook for the three months ended December 31, 2008 and for the full year ending December 31, 2009 is an estimate. Results are subject to change based on further review by the management. LDK Solar plans to report full fourth quarter and fiscal year 2008 results in late February or early March 2009. Once the reporting date is finalized, LDK Solar will issue a press release announcing the date and details of its fourth quarter and fiscal year 2008 conference call.

About LDK Solar

LDK Solar Co., Ltd. is a manufacturer of multicrystalline solar wafers, which are the principal raw material used to produce solar cells. LDK Solar sells multicrystalline wafers globally to manufacturers of photovoltaic products, including solar cells and solar modules. In addition, LDK Solar provides wafer processing services to monocrystalline and multicrystalline solar cell and module manufacturers. LDK Solar's headquarters and manufacturing facilities are located in Hi-Tech Industrial Park, Xinyu City, Jiangxi Province in the People's Republic of China. LDK Solar's office in the United States is located in Sunnyvale, California.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact in this press release are forward-looking statements, including but not limited to, LDK Solar's ability to raise additional capital to finance its operating activities, the effectiveness, profitability and marketability of its products, the future trading of its securities, the ability of LDK Solar to operate as a public company, the period of time during which its current liquidity will enable LDK Solar to fund its operations, its ability to protect its proprietary information, the general economic and business environment and conditions, the volatility of LDK Solar's operating results and financial condition, its ability to attract and retain qualified senior management personnel and research and development staff, its ability to timely and efficiently complete its ongoing construction projects, including its polysilicon plants, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in LDK Solar's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on information available to LDK Solar's management as of the date hereof and on its current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about LDK Solar and the solar industry. Actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results because of such and other risks and uncertainties. LDK Solar undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, or changes in its expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections except as may be required by law.

SOURCE LDK Solar Co., Ltd.



http://www.ldksolar.com 

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