Electron Capital Partners LLC Reduces Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Electron Capital Partners LLC cut its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 75.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,381 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 4,258 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC's holdings in First Solar were worth $243,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 475 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group cut First Solar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $202.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup cut their price target on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 price target (down from $245.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho upgraded First Solar from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and issued a $280.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $223.87.

First Solar Stock Performance

FSLR traded up $0.75 during trading on Thursday, reaching $126.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,491,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,857,949. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.56 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The company's fifty day moving average price is $131.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $166.87. The company has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $863.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. First Solar's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $30,628.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at $7,066,815. This trade represents a 0.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.