First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Bought by Legato Capital Management LLC

Legato Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 165.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after purchasing an additional 12,473 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC's holdings in First Solar were worth $2,529,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in First Solar by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $2,259,697,000 after purchasing an additional 120,289 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $469,154,000 after purchasing an additional 63,739 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in First Solar by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,359,846 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $415,899,000 after purchasing an additional 262,482 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in First Solar by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,835,056 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $323,410,000 after purchasing an additional 223,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $317,399,000. 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, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $466,877.71. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $288,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,398 shares in the company, valued at $791,640. This trade represents a 26.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 15,976 shares of company stock worth $2,515,172. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FSLR. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of First Solar from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating 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 target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 target price (down from $245.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $225.73.

First Solar Trading Up 0.9%

First Solar stock opened at $179.99 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $163.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $262.72. The stock has a market cap of $19.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 29.72%. The firm had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal 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.

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