Robinhood shares gain on Q2 beat, as user and crypto growth accelerate
Investing.com - Shares in First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) sank by more than 12% in premarket U.S. trading after the solar panel manufacturer reported first-quarter earnings that fell short of analyst expectations and cut its financial guidance for the full year.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.95 for the first quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimate of $2.54. Revenue came in at $844.57 million, below analysts’ projections of $866.19 million and down significantly from $1.5 billion in the previous quarter.
First Solar attributed the revenue decline to "an anticipated seasonal reduction in the volume of modules sold."
Looking ahead, First Solar slashed its full-year 2025 outlook, now expecting earnings per share of $12.50 to $17.50, well below the previous guidance of $17.00 to $20.00 and Wall Street projections of $18.55. The group also lowered its revenue forecast to $4.5 billion to $5.5 billion, compared to its earlier projection of $5.3 billion to $5.8 billion.
CEO Mark Widmar said in a statement that U.S. President Donald Trump’s new tariff regime presented "near-term challenges", but expressed confidence in the long-term outlook for solar demand, particularly in the U.S. market.
"We believe that First Solar remains well-positioned to serve this demand," Widmar said.
At the end of the quarter, First Solar ended with a net cash balance of $0.4 billion, down from $1.2 billion at the conclusion of 2024. First Solar cited capital expenditures for its Louisiana manufacturing facility and increased inventories as reasons for the decrease.
In a note to clients downgrading their rating of the stock to "underweight" from "sector weight", analysts at KeyBanc Capital Markets said: "While First Solar has sizable domestic manufacturing capacity that is used to serve the U.S. market, the impact of volumes imported from its facilities in Vietnam, Malaysia, and India appears to be greater than we thought, and not likely to be mitigated in the near-term under the 10% global tariff regime or higher ’reciprocal’ tariffs."
(Scott Kanowsky contributed reporting.)