Alliancebernstein L.P. Has $15.78 Million Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its stake in First Solar, Inc. by 35.7%, now holding 124,790 shares valued at approximately $15.78 million.
• First Solar reported $3.18 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, with a revenue increase of 8.6% year-over-year.
• Equity analysts updated their price targets for First Solar, with Goldman Sachs raising their target to $255.00 and JPMorgan to $208.00, indicating a positive outlook for the stock.

Alliancebernstein L.P. trimmed its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 35.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 124,790 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 69,248 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.12% of First Solar worth $15,777,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in First Solar by 102.2% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 4,601 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $855,000 after purchasing an additional 2,326 shares in the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 3,018 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $532,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar by 111.2% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 526 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 212.4% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 79,585 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $14,027,000 after acquiring an additional 54,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 931,774 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $164,216,000 after acquiring an additional 42,786 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $203.31 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $21.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $116.56 and a one year high of $262.72. The business's fifty day moving average price is $187.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $158.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 28.95%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.25 EPS. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on First Solar from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Solar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on First Solar from $185.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.84.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,600 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $288,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $791,640. The trade was a 26.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.47, for a total value of $4,434,958.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,978 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,317,279.66. The trade was a 21.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,315 shares of company stock worth $6,021,305. Corporate insiders own 0.48% 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.

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