Vontobel Holding Ltd. Purchases 23,528 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 189,320 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after acquiring an additional 23,528 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned about 0.18% of First Solar worth $23,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in First Solar by 396.5% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 11,777 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 9,405 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 7.1% during the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 48,722 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $6,160,000 after buying an additional 3,226 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in First Solar by 24.7% in the first 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 period. Ethic Inc. boosted its stake in First Solar by 34.2% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 17,807 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $3,138,000 after acquiring an additional 4,542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirova US LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 961.0% in the fourth quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $113,906,000 after acquiring an additional 585,394 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on FSLR shares. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on First Solar from $267.00 to $240.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Glj Research upgraded First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $172.37 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays reduced their target price on First Solar from $236.00 to $204.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $255.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $228.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,369 shares in the company, valued at $1,798,689.49. This represents a 20.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,868 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.08, for a total value of $278,481.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $894,181.84. This represents a 23.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 14,376 shares of company stock worth $2,227,172. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Up 8.7%

NASDAQ FSLR traded up $14.91 during trading on Thursday, hitting $185.43. The stock had a trading volume of 6,399,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,233,808. The company has a market capitalization of $19.89 billion, a PE ratio of 15.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.52. The company's 50-day moving average price is $155.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.93. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $262.72.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.11 million. First Solar had a net margin of 29.72% and a return on equity of 16.32%. First Solar's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current 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.