Why 3d Systems Stock Plummeted Today

3d Systems (DDD -1.44%) stock sank in Wednesday's trading. The company's share price closed out the daily session down 23.1%, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

3d Systems published its fourth-quarter results after the market closed yesterday, and the company posted sales and earnings results for the period that fell short of the market's expectations. In addition to underwhelming Q4 performance, the 3D printing specialist also issued forward guidance that fell short of Wall Street's expectations.

3d Systems Q4 report was a dud

In Q4, 3d Systems posted a net loss of $2.30 per share on revenue of $114.85 million. The company's sales for the period were down 13.5% year over year. Meanwhile, its per-share loss expanded dramatically from the loss per share of $0.20 that it posted in the prior-year quarter.

The company ended the year with sales of roughly $488.1 million -- representing an annual decline of roughly 9.3%. Meanwhile, the business posted a net loss of roughly $373.4 million, increasing from a net loss of $122.7 million in 2022. The company's sales have continued to decline and show no signs of rebounding to the high they reached in 2018, and its losses are mounting.

Guidance for 2024 suggests little improvement this year

3d Systems expects sales for this year to come in between $475 million and $505 million. At the midpoint of the guidance range, that would suggest that revenue will be roughly flat on an annual basis. Meanwhile, the company expects its adjusted gross profit margin to come in between 42% and 44%, suggesting an increase from the 41.1% adjusted margin it posted last year.

While the company is guiding for adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) to come in at a break-even point or better, it's likely the business will post another substantial net loss. On the heels of a disappointing Q4 report, there's not much for investors to be excited about given that guidance essentially calls for sales to be flat and points to another big loss this year.