First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR – Get Rating) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $212.63.

FSLR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on First Solar from $188.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 6th. Argus raised their target price on First Solar from $176.00 to $261.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 14th. Wolfe Research cut First Solar from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 15th. Credit Suisse Group raised their target price on First Solar from $163.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Friday, April 28th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on First Solar from $201.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 6th.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 26,553 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $5,488,505.10. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 108,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,408,967.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, General Counsel Jason E. Dymbort sold 1,610 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.21, for a total value of $322,338.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 5,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,858.19. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 26,553 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $5,488,505.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 108,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,408,967.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 57,409 shares of company stock valued at $12,065,073. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 77.9% during the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,786,315 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,041,024,000 after acquiring an additional 2,096,612 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $213,049,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of First Solar by 1,046.1% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,518,401 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $227,441,000 after buying an additional 1,385,912 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 197.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,336,038 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $111,880,000 after buying an additional 887,443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Solar by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,180,340 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $326,050,000 after buying an additional 780,028 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.97% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Down 0.4 %

First Solar stock opened at $200.89 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 3.08 and a quick ratio of 2.44. First Solar has a one year low of $60.77 and a one year high of $232.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.46 billion, a PE ratio of 515.12 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s fifty day moving average is $203.49 and its 200 day moving average is $180.38.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.59). First Solar had a net margin of 1.49% and a return on equity of 0.71%. The business had revenue of $548.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $716.66 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.41) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 49.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Solar will post 7.35 EPS for the current year.

First Solar Company Profile

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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.