Cox Capital Mgt LLC Raises Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Cox Capital Mgt LLC boosted its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 229.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,861 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after acquiring an additional 9,653 shares during the quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC's holdings in First Solar were worth $1,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 665.8% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,192 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $7,308,000 after buying an additional 34,074 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,240,000. Golden State Equity Partners boosted its position in First Solar by 41,342.9% during the fourth quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 2,901 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth about $16,745,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 711,688 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $125,428,000 after acquiring an additional 63,820 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $159.81. The stock had a trading volume of 2,817,491 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,059,701. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $141.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $160.01. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.56 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46. 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 posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). The firm had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $863.11 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,066,815. The trade was a 0.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $624,247.20. The trade was a 8.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 17,802 shares of company stock valued at $2,655,403 in the last three months. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on FSLR shares. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $223.00 price target on First Solar and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $237.00 to $214.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.94.

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.