Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 2,301 First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• Applied Finance Capital Management LLC acquired a stake of 2,301 shares in First Solar, Inc. valued at approximately $381,000, signaling ongoing interest from hedge funds in the solar cell manufacturer.
• Several financial analysts have raised their price targets on First Solar stock, with BMO Capital Markets setting the target at $203.00 and Mizuho at $278.00, reflecting growing confidence in the company's performance.
• Insider selling occurred Recently, with CEO Mark R. Widmar selling 2,321 shares for about $462,900, indicating potential profit-taking among company executives.

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in 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 acquired 2,301 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $381,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 126.9% in the second quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 152 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake 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 period. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in First Solar in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, First Pacific Financial acquired a new stake in First Solar in the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on First Solar from $194.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Mizuho raised their target price on First Solar from $275.00 to $278.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Susquehanna raised their target price on First Solar from $222.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on First Solar in a report on Monday, October 6th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $240.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on First Solar from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $240.56.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $231.85 on Friday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $210.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.38. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $248.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 2,321 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.44, for a total value of $462,900.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 81,861 shares in the company, valued at $16,326,357.84. This trade represents a 2.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 30,715 shares of company stock worth $5,733,305 over the last quarter. 0.48% of the stock is currently 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.

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