Leisure Capital Management bought a new position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 8,716 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $1,102,000.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FSLR. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in First Solar by 13.9% in the fourth 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 period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its holdings in First Solar by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 1,748,603 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $308,174,000 after buying an additional 137,901 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,450,914 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $255,709,000 after buying an additional 120,239 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in First Solar by 26.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,249,600 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $220,250,000 after buying an additional 261,480 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of First Solar by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,248,552 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $220,045,000 after acquiring an additional 293,134 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $223.00 price objective on shares of First Solar and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on First Solar from $194.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $194.00 price target on First Solar and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on First Solar from $191.00 to $177.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $222.67.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on First Solar
Insider Activity at First Solar
In other First Solar news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $466,877.71. Following the sale, the insider owned 11,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,798,689.49. The trade was a 20.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $288,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $791,640. This trade represents a 26.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,976 shares of company stock worth $2,515,172 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.
First Solar Stock Performance
FSLR stock traded down $0.95 during trading on Friday, hitting $184.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,629,586 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,623,156. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $168.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $19.80 billion, a PE ratio of 15.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.48. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $116.56 and a 1-year high of $262.72.
First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 28.95%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.
First Solar Company Profile
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Free Report)
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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