First Solar, Inc. $FSLR Stock Position Raised by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its stake in First Solar, Inc. by 30.8% during the second quarter, owning a total of 57,859 shares valued at approximately $9.58 million.
• Analysts have recently boosted their price targets for First Solar, with BMO Capital Markets setting a target of $203.00 and JPMorgan Chase raising theirs to $262.00, indicating strong investor confidence in the stock.
• First Solar reported $3.18 earnings per share for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing an 8.6% year-over-year revenue increase to $1.10 billion.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 30.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,859 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after buying an additional 13,618 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG owned 0.05% of First Solar worth $9,578,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its holdings in First Solar by 3.9% in the first quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 1,658 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 1.4% in the first quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,726 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $598,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Harrington Investments INC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 0.5% during the second quarter. Harrington Investments INC now owns 13,278 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $2,198,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 9,257 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in First Solar by 5.1% in the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $194,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 2,321 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.44, for a total value of $462,900.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 81,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,326,357.84. The trade was a 2.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,715 shares of company stock worth $5,733,305 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of First Solar from $194.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on First Solar from $241.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of First Solar to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Mizuho raised their price target on First Solar from $275.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on First Solar from $212.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $231.04.

First Solar Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $232.13 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.56 and a 52-week high of $240.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.90. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $200.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.18. The firm has a market cap of $24.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.38.

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

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.

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