First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Sees Large Volume Increase After Analyst Upgrade

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $240.00 to $262.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Approximately 1,813,743 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 18% from the previous session’s volume of 2,212,083 shares.The stock last traded at $264.08 and had previously closed at $249.81.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on First Solar from $359.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Evercore ISI raised First Solar from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $227.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on First Solar from $209.50 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $239.16.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total transaction of $2,592,551.85. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,539,477.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,170 shares in the company, valued at $766,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total value of $2,592,551.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,539,477.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 51,455 shares of company stock worth $9,617,472. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in First Solar in the first quarter valued at approximately $21,815,000. Wahed Invest LLC lifted its stake in First Solar by 16.1% during the first quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 2,103 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in First Solar by 175.6% during the first quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,685 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $960,000 after purchasing an additional 3,622 shares in the last quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in First Solar by 3.3% during the first quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 4,740 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in First Solar by 1.7% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 167,897 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $28,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,842 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Stock Up 7.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.86. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $163.46. The company has a market capitalization of $28.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.94, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.37.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a return on equity of 16.24% and a net margin of 28.75%. The company had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About First Solar

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.