Lido Advisors LLC Increases Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 58.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,517 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after purchasing an additional 6,864 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC's holdings in First Solar were worth $3,653,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in First Solar by 29.3% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,138,473 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $224,540,000 after acquiring an additional 258,204 shares during the last quarter. Atlatl Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,697,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1,054.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 52,219 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $13,641,000 after purchasing an additional 47,695 shares during the last quarter. Genus Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $4,525,000. Finally, TABR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $5,626,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 498 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total value of $107,383.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,712 shares in the company, valued at $6,622,428.56. This trade represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 9,926 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.21, for a total transaction of $2,314,842.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 95,148 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,189,465.08. The trade was a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,893 shares of company stock worth $7,893,775. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

First Solar Trading Down 1.5%

FSLR opened at $202.82 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.73. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $171.99 and a 12 month high of $320.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $248.59 and a 200 day moving average of $226.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 30.73%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.95 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.54 EPS for the current year.

More First Solar News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Roth Capital reaffirmed its buy rating on First Solar and set a $300 price target, implying meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary highlighted record U.S. solar power output and rising electricity demand from AI data centers, which supports the broader solar demand narrative and could benefit First Solar over time. 24/7 Wall St.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms, including Rosen, Howard G. Smith, Schall, Kaplan Fox, Faruqi & Faruqi, and others, reminded investors about pending First Solar securities-fraud class actions and the August 24 lead-plaintiff deadline. PR Newswire
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reporting showed no meaningful update, with the latest filing indicating zero shares reported short and a days-to-cover ratio of 0.0, so it does not appear to be a current market driver.
• Negative Sentiment: The ongoing securities-fraud litigation headlines create a legal overhang that may pressure the shares until there is more clarity on the case outcome.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lifted their target price on First Solar from $213.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday, July 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on First Solar from $300.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $249.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $257.10.

First Solar Profile

First Solar, Inc NASDAQ: FSLR is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.

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