First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Given New $297.00 Price Target at Guggenheim

Key Points

• Guggenheim lowered First Solar’s price target to $297 from $299 while maintaining a “buy” rating, implying approximately 62.6% upside from the stock’s $182.66 opening price.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable overall: First Solar has an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $258.86, with recent targets ranging from $255 to $328.
• First Solar’s latest quarterly results beat EPS expectations at $5.30 versus $4.67, but revenue declined 22.8% year over year to $1.23 billion and missed estimates. Institutional investors own approximately 92.08% of the company.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Guggenheim from $299.00 to $297.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the solar cell manufacturer's stock. Guggenheim's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 62.60% from the stock's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on FSLR. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Mizuho set a $328.00 price objective on First Solar in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of First Solar from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday. They issued a "strong-buy" rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $258.86.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR opened at $182.66 on Monday. First Solar has a 1 year low of $165.86 and a 1 year high of $320.95. The company has a market cap of $19.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $188.72 and a 200-day moving average of $216.19.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $5.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.63. First Solar had a net margin of 37.12% and a return on equity of 18.33%. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.24 EPS. First Solar's revenue was down 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that First Solar will post 17.64 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.00, for a total transaction of $139,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 5,042 shares in the company, valued at $877,308. This trade represents a 13.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Samantha L. Sloan sold 127 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.95, for a total transaction of $28,314.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,018 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $449,913.10. This represents a 5.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,256 shares of company stock valued at $1,455,813. Insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in First Solar by 484.9% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Solar by 9.7% during the third quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,939 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $3,351,000 after purchasing an additional 1,674 shares during the period. IPG Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 18.9% in the third quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,170 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 982 shares in the last quarter. Summit Wealth Group LLC Co. bought a new stake in First Solar in the 3rd quarter valued at $373,000. Finally, Greenleaf Trust raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 4,946 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $866,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about First Solar

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: First Solar added 1.4 gigawatts of U.S. gross bookings at $0.36 per watt, indicating continued demand and pricing strength in its domestic market. The board also authorized a share-repurchase program of up to $500 million, which could support per-share value. First Solar: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: First Solar’s third-quarter adjusted earnings of $5.30 per share exceeded the $4.67 analyst consensus, highlighting strong margins and better-than-expected profitability despite lower sales. FSLR Q3 deep dive: bookings slowdown and pricing strength amid policy uncertainty
• Neutral Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane initiated research coverage on FSLR, adding another institutional view of the company but without a disclosed rating or price target in the available report. First Solar Research Coverage Started at BNP Paribas Exane
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays cut its First Solar price target to $230 from $259. Needham, Sanford C. Bernstein, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and RBC also reduced their targets, creating a broad negative analyst-revision signal. Barclays Adjusts Price Target on First Solar to $230 From $259
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue fell 22.8% year over year to $1.23 billion and missed estimates. Management’s full-year revenue outlook of $4.75 billion at the midpoint was 5.7% below consensus, while the report cited slower bookings and policy uncertainty. FSLR Q3 deep dive: bookings slowdown and pricing strength amid policy uncertainty

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc is a vertically integrated solar technology and manufacturing company that designs, manufactures and sells photovoltaic (PV) solar modules. Its modules use advanced thin-film semiconductor technology based on cadmium telluride (CdTe), rather than the crystalline-silicon technology used by most solar manufacturers. The company serves utility-scale solar developers, commercial and industrial customers, and other large-scale energy users.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, First Solar operates research and development, manufacturing and recycling facilities in the United States and internationally.

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