Simplicity Solutions LLC Acquires Shares of 1,229 First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Simplicity Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,229 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in First Solar by 504.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 399,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $68,852,000 after acquiring an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. Sora Investors LLC grew its position in First Solar by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sora Investors LLC now owns 90,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $14,543,000 after acquiring an additional 35,000 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in First Solar by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,945,549,000 after acquiring an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its position in First Solar by 304,592.2% in the 4th quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $26,771,000 after acquiring an additional 155,342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC grew its position in First Solar by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 50,354 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $8,137,000 after acquiring an additional 10,940 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FSLR has been the subject of several research reports. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on First Solar in a report on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $236.00 target price for the company. Mizuho upped their target price on First Solar from $188.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on First Solar from $224.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.68.

Insider Activity

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $108,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $108,640.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total value of $2,592,551.85. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,539,477.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 26,620 shares of company stock valued at $4,269,540. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $175.04 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $161.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $156.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 3.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.74 billion, a PE ratio of 22.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $232.00.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.19 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 13.80% and a net margin of 25.03%. The company’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.07) earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current year.

First Solar Company Profile

First Solar, Inc, a solar technology company, provides photovoltaic (PV) solar energy solutions in the United States, France, Japan, Chile, and internationally. The company manufactures and sells PV solar modules with a thin film semiconductor technology that provides a lower-carbon alternative to conventional crystalline silicon PV solar modules.