GT Solar Misses By a Mile (SOLR, SPWRA, WFR, AMAT)

GT Solar International, Inc. (NASDAQ:SOLR) makes the equipment that other companies use to manufacture photovoltaic solar panels. Thus, when the solar panel makers are suffering, so is GT Solar.  The company is suffering and expects to keep suffering.

The company’s fourth fiscal quarter was an unmitigated disaster. The company managed fully diluted EPS of just $0.08, compared with $0.20 in the same period a year ago and analysts’ estimates for the quarter of $0.18. Revenues for the quarter were up from a year ago, coming in at $138.5 million compared with $132.2 million. But revenues were about 10% below estimates of $151.29 million.

GT Solar’s business slowed in the second half of its fiscal year and the company’s president and CEO sees that continuing in 2010. The company guided 2010 revenues at $450 million-$550 million. That means that its fourth quarter revenue is likely to be higher than in any quarter going forward.

GT Solar has followed most of the solar makers for the first three months of 2009. SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ:SPWRA), MEMC Electronics Materials, Inc. (NYSE:WFR), and Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) have all reported rough times in the quarter.

This report is helping to kick the solar players today.  Shares of MEMC are down about 2.5%, SunPower is down nearly 3%, and Applied Materials is down about 3.5%.

GT Solar’s poor report is pushing its shares down over 20% at $5.44 right after the open.  GT Solar’s 52-week range is $0.88-$14.45, and it closed yesterday at $7.22.  Even the recent rise in oil and energy prices does not seem to be acting as any underlying support for the solar sector.

Paul Ausick
May 13, 2009