NBT Bank N A NY Cuts Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

NBT Bank N A NY lowered its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,954 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 455 shares during the quarter. NBT Bank N A NY’s holdings in First Solar were worth $344,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FSLR. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new position in First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 214.0% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on FSLR shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.08.

First Solar Trading Up 4.5 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $139.10 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.98, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.96 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $165.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $193.16.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $624,247.20. The trade was a 8.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 30,739 shares of company stock worth $4,289,403 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.