Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec Sells 2,523 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• The Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec has reduced its stake in First Solar, Inc. by 10.8%, now holding 20,838 shares valued at approximately $2.63 million.
• Recent analyst ratings have generally improved, with firms like JPMorgan and UBS raising target prices, indicating growing confidence in the stock, which currently has a consensus price target of $225.84.
• First Solar reported strong quarterly earnings of $3.18 per share, surpassing expectations with a revenue of $1.10 billion, leading to an optimistic earnings forecast for the fiscal year.

Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec decreased its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 10.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,838 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 2,523 shares during the period. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec's holdings in First Solar were worth $2,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 10.9% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,437 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $3,216,000 after acquiring an additional 2,510 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in First Solar by 396.5% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 11,777 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 9,405 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in First Solar by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 48,722 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $6,160,000 after purchasing an additional 3,226 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 189,320 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $23,936,000 after purchasing an additional 23,528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 9,682 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,224,000 after buying an additional 1,916 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group set a $194.00 price objective on shares of First Solar and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of First Solar from $185.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Solar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on First Solar from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.84.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $288,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at $791,640. The trade was a 26.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 32,315 shares of company stock valued at $6,021,305. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

FSLR traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $203.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,652,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,259,175. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $187.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.92. The stock has a market cap of $21.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.39, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $262.72.

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

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.