Dover Advisors LLC Acquires New Shares in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Dover Advisors LLC purchased a new position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,977 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $250,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 1st quarter valued at about $316,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in First Solar by 25.2% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,677 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $971,000 after buying an additional 1,543 shares during the period. Tobam boosted its position in First Solar by 56.6% during the 1st quarter. Tobam now owns 23,330 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $2,950,000 after acquiring an additional 8,436 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in shares of First Solar by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 421,217 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $53,254,000 after acquiring an additional 46,207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 1st quarter worth $218,000. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR stock traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $174.73. 670,950 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,054,265. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $274.08. The stock's 50 day moving average is $147.77 and its 200 day moving average is $158.46. The company has a market cap of $18.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.53.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.11 million. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. First Solar's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,798,689.49. The trade was a 20.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,868 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.08, for a total transaction of $278,481.44. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,998 shares in the company, valued at $894,181.84. The trade was a 23.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,376 shares of company stock worth $2,227,172 over the last quarter. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on FSLR shares. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of First Solar from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $157.00 to $192.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on First Solar from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $229.19.

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.