Avanza Fonder AB Buys Shares of 7,374 First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• Avanza Fonder AB acquired 7,374 shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) during Q2, valued at approximately $1,221,000.
• CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of First Solar stock, resulting in a 21.37% decrease in his position.
• First Solar reported a quarterly earnings per share of $3.18, exceeding analyst estimates by $0.50, with a revenue increase of 8.6% year-over-year.

Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 7,374 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $1,221,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in First Solar in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 138.9% in the second quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 172 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 591.9% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 256 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Advisors acquired a new position in First Solar in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FSLR. TD Cowen upped their target price on First Solar from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on First Solar from $241.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho increased their price objective on First Solar from $275.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Glj Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $214.06 price objective (up previously from $172.53) on shares of First Solar in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $194.00 price target on First Solar and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $228.80.

First Solar Stock Performance

First Solar stock traded up $6.71 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $219.20. 2,687,011 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,023,652. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.51 billion, a PE ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The business's 50-day moving average is $192.84 and its 200-day moving average is $162.71. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $262.72.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.50. First Solar had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 28.95%.The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.25 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.47, for a total transaction of $4,434,958.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,978 shares in the company, valued at $16,317,279.66. This trade represents a 21.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total value of $124,872.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,315 shares of company stock worth $6,021,305 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar 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.