First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Rating Lowered by Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research downgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR – Get Rating) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note published on Monday, The Fly reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on FSLR. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of First Solar from $201.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on First Solar from $180.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. Morgan Stanley cut First Solar from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $194.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on First Solar from $230.00 to $220.00 in a report on Monday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on First Solar from $188.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $209.52.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $221.59 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $203.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $177.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 568.18 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Solar has a 12-month low of $60.77 and a 12-month high of $232.00.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.59). First Solar had a return on equity of 0.71% and a net margin of 1.49%. The business had revenue of $548.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $716.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.41) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 49.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that First Solar will post 7.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 26,553 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total transaction of $5,488,505.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 108,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,408,967.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 26,553 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total transaction of $5,488,505.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 108,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,408,967.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul H. Stebbins sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.31, for a total transaction of $573,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,772 shares in the company, valued at $6,597,707.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 40,409 shares of company stock worth $8,443,893 over the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in First Solar by 370.7% during the third quarter. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in First Solar by 214.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 261 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake in First Solar by 172.7% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 150 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 80.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Solar

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First Solar, Inc is a solar technology company, which engages in the provision of solar modules. It is involved in the design, manufacture, and sale of cadmium tellurid (CdTe) solar modules, which convert sunlight into electricity. The company was founded by Michael J. Ahearn in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, AZ.