FTC Solar Reports Wider-Than-Expected Q1 Loss, Beats Revenue; Shares Pop

FTC Solar, Inc. (FTCI) reported its first public quarterly results post IPO. The results were impacted in part by increases in steel prices and freight. Shares popped 2.3% to close at $11.13 on June 8.

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FTCI is a global provider of advanced solar tracker systems supported by proprietary software and value-added engineering services. The company commenced trading on April 28.

The company reported a loss of $0.10 per share, compared to earnings of $0.04 per share in the prior-year period. The loss was also worse than the earnings whisper loss of $0.06 per share.

Total revenue came in at $65.71 million, up 103% from the year-ago period, and surpassed the earnings whisper number of $64.10 million. (See FTC Solar stock analysis on TipRanks)

Tony Etnyre, President and CEO of the company said, “The solar industry continues to see significant growth as part of a multi-decade, fundamental change in energy markets… FTC Solar is well positioned to benefit from these developments as we offer the global solar market a unique and differentiated offering.”

The company stated that it has $159 million worth of executed contracts which are expected to be delivered in 2021 and around $167 million with expected delivery in 2022. Based on these metrics, the company foresees long-term growth and sound performance in the coming quarters.

For the second quarter, the company projects revenue to fall in the range of $41 – $46 million with a net loss of between $17.3 and $10.4 million.

For the second half of the year, the company expects to see an improvement in revenue over the second quarter and also move towards profitability on a non-GAAP basis.

Following the results, Raymond James analyst Pavel Molchanov reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $13, implying 16.8% upside potential to current levels.

Molchanov said, “Trackers are a below-the-radar part of the PV value chain, but as with everything else they are not immune from the overarching trend of commoditization. That said, we find much to like about FTC- deliver friendly product, a portion of software in revenue mix, and ultra-low capital intensity.”

Consensus among analysts is a Strong Buy based on 6 Buys and 1 Hold. The FTC Solar average analyst price target stands at $14.29 and implies upside potential of 28.4% to current levels. Shares have lost 22% year-to-date.

FTCI scores an 8 of 10 from TipRanks’ Smart Score rating system, indicating that the stock has strong potential to outperform market expectations.