First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR) reported first-quarter results for the period ended March 31st, 2012 Thursday afternoon.

The company posted a 12 percent decline in sales from $567.29 million in the year-ago quarter to $497.06 million. First Solar cited lower volumes for module-only sales and ower average selling prices and lower volumes for module-only sales, which was partially offset by higher systems revenue. The latest quarter's sales result was down about 25 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011.

First Solar swung to a net loss of $449.42 million, down sharply from a gain of $115.97 million in the same period last year. The loss per share totaled $5.20, compared to a gain of $1.33 in last year's first quarter. The non-GAAP loss per share was 8 cents.

Analysts on the Street were looking for quarterly sales of $681.5 million and a per-share gain of 59 cents.

Mike Ahearn, Chairman of the Board, said, "First Solar's performance in the quarter was impacted by an aggressive competitive environment resulting from persistent supply-demand imbalances in the market, as well as restructuring costs that will improve our operating efficiency and help position us for the future. Looking forward, we are confident we have the right long-term strategy and the right platform to enable long-term growth and value creation. We believe that by executing our strategic roadmaps and completing our restructuring program we can achieve our targets of 2.6 to 3.0 GW of sales in sustainable markets, earning a return on invested capital of 13 to 17 percent by 2016."

Amid the concerning quarterly results, First Solar boosted its FY12 EPS guidance from a prior $3.75-$4.25 to $4.00-$4.50, which compares to the Street estimate of $4.07. Operating cash flow guidance rose from $800-$900 million to $850-$950 million.

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