• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem

1

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
TechSolarCity

SolarCity’s Stock Craters on Missed Guidance, Slower Growth

By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 9, 2016, 8:18 PM ET
A SolarCity Installation As Earnings Figures Are Released
A SolarCity Corp. employee carries a solar panel during an installation at a home in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, U.S., on Wednesday, May 7, 2014. SolarCity Corp., the largest U.S solar-power provider by market value, is expected to announce quarterly earnings figures after the close of U.S. financial markets on May 7. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPhotograph by Patrick T. Fallon — Bloomberg via Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

SolarCity, the largest U.S. solar panel installer, saw its stock plunge over 30% on Tuesday afternoon after the company reported a disappointing number of installations and a weak financial forecast.

SolarCity said it installed 870 megawatts of solar panels last year, or 73% more than in 2014. That is the equivalent of enough electricity to power nearly 150,000 average homes.

However, SolarCity had predicted it would install between 878 megawatts and 898 megawatts last year. It fell just short.

The company also missed on its guidance for solar panel installations in the fourth quarter of 2015. It said it installed 272 megawatts in the quarter—enough electricity to power about 45,000 homes—compared with a forecast of 280 to 300 megawatts.

SolarCity (SCTY) said part of the slower installations in the latest quarter were due to the company abruptly stopping business in Nevada. The decision came after the state regulator there decided to change an important policy that made solar installations attractive to customers by paying them for the energy they produced.

The regulator’s new and highly controversial decision reduces the compensation that the solar customers get and also adds on monthly fees for use and maintenance of the power grid.

The company said its year-long missed guidance was also a result of unforeseen delays in large solar panel projects for commercial companies. In its earnings release, SolarCity said, “We are not happy with these results, and recognize our need to revamp our guidance methodology to avoid any potential shortfalls going forward.”

SolarCity low cost, efficient solar panel:

In addition to the missed guidance, SolarCity projected slower growth in 2016. The company said it will install 180 megawatts of solar panels in the first quarter, or only 18% more than in the same period in 2015. SolarCity said “this represents a higher-than-usual seasonal slowdown that we have historically experienced after strong fourth quarters.” One of the reasons for the slow down was, again, the closure of its Nevada operations.

However, SolarCity’s CEO Lyndon Rive has been clear that 2016 is a year in which the company needs to reduce its losses, and simultaneously slow its growth. In its previous earnings, he said the company planned to cut its growth potentially in half and become cash flow positive by the end of 2016.

In the earnings call on Tuesday, Rive reiterated that plan and said, “the primary focus of our company in 2016 is our goal of generating positive cash by year-end.”

In 2015, SolarCity generated $399.62 million in revenue compared with $255.03 million in 2014. In the fourth quarter specifically, its revenue was $115.48 million versus $71.81 million in the same period a year earlier.

However, SolarCity’s losses grew substantially last year. It lost a whopping $768.82 million in the year, more than twice as much as in 2014. In the fourth quarter SolarCity lost $231.89 million, compared to a loss of $141.44 million for the same period the year before.

The revenue and losses beat analysts expectations.

But SolarCity’s first quarter outlook surprised analysts. The company said it expected to lose between $2.55 to $2.65 per share, excluding one time items. That would be bigger than its $2.36 loss the year before, despite Rive’s promises that the company is trying to cut its losses in 2016.

Sign up For Data Sheet, the tech industry’s daily newsletter.

Last year, Solar City, which is run by Rive, the cousin of entrepreneur Elon Musk, SolarCity’s chairman, went though a number of highs and lows. While the company continued to ramp up its installations, it faced opposition from utilities and regulators in some states like Nevada that are struggling to figure out how to manage the new influx of solar panels.

At the same time, an important federal tax incentive that was set to expire by the end of 2016, was extended until 2019. It will also be reduced more gradually over time. The extension of the policy, called the investment tax credit or ITC, was a boon across the solar and wind industries.

Despite its attempts to throttle growth, SolarCity said it still plans to install 1.25 gigawatts of solar panels in 2016. That’s enough electricity to power over 200,000 average homes.

 

About the Author
By Katie Fehrenbacher
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Tech

Sundar Pichai, chief executive officer of Alphabet Inc.
AIAlphabet
Anthropic and SpaceX just handed Google the biggest profit quarter in company history—on paper
By Eva RoytburgJuly 22, 2026
8 hours ago
‘It’s called StreetEasy, not StreetHard’: Mamdani cracks down on scourge of ‘housefishing’ and ‘real estate slop’
Real EstateHousing
‘It’s called StreetEasy, not StreetHard’: Mamdani cracks down on scourge of ‘housefishing’ and ‘real estate slop’
By Tatiana SatauaJuly 22, 2026
10 hours ago
As Washington panics about Chinese AI, Jensen Huang says open-source models like Kimi are ‘excellent’ and should be embraced, not banned
AIChina
As Washington panics about Chinese AI, Jensen Huang says open-source models like Kimi are ‘excellent’ and should be embraced, not banned
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 22, 2026
10 hours ago
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sits next to U.S. President Donald Trump.
AITech regulation
OpenAI’s rogue hacking incident was a warning shot. Will it be a wake-up call to finally create AI safety regulation?
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 22, 2026
10 hours ago
Man holding his hands open
InvestingStock
A new group of stocks is transforming global equities markets. Meet ‘Memi,’ the $3 trillion sector fueled by AI’s insatiable hunger for memory chips
By Amanda GerutJuly 22, 2026
11 hours ago
Sam Altman getting into a car
CybersecurityOpenAI
OpenAI’s models went rogue and hacked Hugging Face. It’s a wake-up call, experts say, but more concerning behavior may be next
By Beatrice NolanJuly 22, 2026
11 hours ago

Most Popular

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
Real Estate
The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 22, 2026
14 hours ago
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
3 days ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
2 days ago
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
Cybersecurity
OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation
By Jeremy Kahn and Emily ForliniJuly 21, 2026
1 day ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
2 days ago
Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar
Economy
Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 22, 2026
12 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.