Invesco Ltd. Has $306.91 Million Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in First Solar, Inc. by 32.3% in Q1 2023, bringing its total ownership to 2,427,500 shares valued at approximately $306.9 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and DZ BANK AG, also raised their stakes in First Solar, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• First Solar reported earnings of $3.18 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, and achieved an 8.6% revenue growth compared to the prior year.

Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 32.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,427,500 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after buying an additional 592,444 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned 2.26% of First Solar worth $306,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in First Solar by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 11,348 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,435,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in First Solar by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,243 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $284,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in First Solar by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,293 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 11.6% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 985 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $125,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,096 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 8,037 shares in the company, valued at $1,246,136.85. This trade represents a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $466,877.71. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,798,689.49. This trade represents a 20.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 43,684 shares of company stock worth $7,660,704 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Up 11.1%

FSLR traded up $19.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $199.95. 10,927,711 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,393,773. The company has a market cap of $21.44 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.48. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $171.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $116.56 and a one year high of $262.72.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 28.95% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FSLR. Oppenheimer lowered shares of First Solar from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $203.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $185.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of First Solar from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.44.

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.