First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Trading Up 1% – What’s Next?

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)’s stock price was up 1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $135.70 and last traded at $133.80. Approximately 531,927 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 2,678,321 shares. The stock had previously closed at $132.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FSLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.08.

First Solar Stock Up 2.3 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $162.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $191.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total value of $55,710.24. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,695 shares in the company, valued at $624,247.20. This trade represents a 8.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,272 shares of the business’s 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 $169,125.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 109,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,492,640. This represents a 1.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,739 shares of company stock valued at $4,289,403. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in First Solar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,259,697,000 after buying an additional 120,289 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in First Solar by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,236,383,000 after buying an additional 108,984 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in First Solar by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $469,154,000 after acquiring an additional 63,739 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in First Solar by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,359,846 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $415,899,000 after acquiring an additional 262,482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,835,056 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $323,410,000 after acquiring an additional 223,933 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.