Shares of solar panel manufacturer First Solar (FSLR 1.34%) are tanking today. The company ended the year strong, but management disappointed investors with guidance for 2026.
First Solar stock tanked nearly 20% on the news, and remained down by 15.2% as of 10:41 a.m. ET.
Image source: Getty Images.
Growing domestic supply
First Solar's fourth-quarter report wasn't bad at all. It culminated a strong year for the company, with sales growing 24% to $5.2 billion. More good news from the company during the fourth quarter included the commissioning of a new manufacturing facility in Louisiana and plans for a new 3.7 gigawatt solar panel production facility in South Carolina.
That's about where the good news ended for investors, though. Guidance for 2026 implied no sales growth and possibly a decline in revenue. That was a severe disappointment, with analysts expecting about $6.2 billion in 2026 sales, according to FactSet Research.
NASDAQ: FSLR
Key Data Points
Investors have been betting that First Solar's growing capacity will pay off. The stock soared last year, and remains 35% higher over the last 12 months, even after today's plunge. But guidance implying no sales growth isn't what investors wanted to see.
After a strong run in shares last year, it will likely take a beat on that 2026 guidance for First Solar shares to get another boost higher.
