Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:CSIQ) reported a significant earnings miss for the fourth quarter of 2025, sending its shares down nearly 29% on Thursday morning.
The company posted a net loss of $86 million, or $1.66 per share, far more than the expected loss per share of $0.47.
Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.2 billion, down 18% sequentially and 20% year-over-year, falling short of analyst forecasts of $1.37 billion. The decline was attributed to lower sales of solar modules and battery energy storage systems, as well as delays in certain project deliveries.
Gross profit dropped to $124 million, with a gross margin of 10.2%, compared with $256 million and 17.2% in the previous quarter. The decrease was driven in part by impairment charges on certain project assets and lower contributions from module and project asset sales, though higher average selling prices partially offset the impact.
Operating expenses fell to $188 million, down from $222 million in Q3 2025, reflecting lower logistics costs. Nevertheless, operating expenses represented 15.5% of revenue, slightly higher than the prior quarter’s 14.9%.
Total solar module shipments recognized as revenue were 4.3 GW in Q4 2025, down 16% quarter-over-quarter and 47% year-over-year.
Despite the weak quarter, Canadian Solar highlighted operational milestones for the year, including 24.3 GW of solar module shipments globally, record US energy storage shipments of 3.9 GWh, and the ramp-up of its Texas module factory toward a planned annual capacity of 10 GWp by the second half of 2026.
The company also reported total debt of $6.5 billion at year-end, up slightly from $6.4 billion at the end of September 2025, largely due to new project financing.
"We demonstrated strategic resilience and operational discipline throughout a year defined by persistent market headwinds and a shifting regulatory landscape,” Canadian Solar CEO Shwan Qu said.
“In response to the prolonged solar downturn, we pivoted away from the industry's traditional focus on shipment volumes and instead took the lead by prioritizing margins and diversifying our profit drivers, notably energy storage.”