Bank of New York Mellon Corp Has $87.18 Million Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lowered its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 3.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 689,542 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 22,146 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.64% of First Solar worth $87,179,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in First Solar in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the first quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in First Solar by 116.3% during the 1st quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 465 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ FSLR traded down $2.65 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $162.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,136,077 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,268,590. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $262.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $159.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.45. The stock has a market cap of $17.42 billion, a PE ratio of 14.04, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.55). The business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 29.72%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wolfe Research raised shares of First Solar from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $228.69.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 8,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,246,136.85. This trade represents a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 11,369 shares in the company, valued at $1,798,689.49. The trade was a 20.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,976 shares of company stock worth $2,515,172 over the last quarter. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About First Solar

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.