Long Focus Capital Management LLC Purchases Shares of 70,000 First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• Long Focus Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar, purchasing 70,000 shares valued at approximately $8.85 million, representing a 0.07% ownership in the company.
• Multiple institutional investors increased their stakes in First Solar, with significant growth from companies like Boothbay Fund Management (87% increase) and Northern Trust Corp (30.7% increase).
• Recent analyst reports have set price targets for First Solar, with Mizuho raising their target to $278 and Goldman Sachs increasing theirs to $255, contributing to a consensus price target of $225.84.

Long Focus Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 70,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $8,850,000. Long Focus Capital Management LLC owned 0.07% of First Solar as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in FSLR. Boothbay Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 87.0% during the 4th quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 1,522 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 708 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 80,687 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $14,225,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 30.7% during the 4th 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 period. Lido Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 54.3% during the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 7,794 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,374,000 after acquiring an additional 2,743 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.9% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 285,084 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $50,243,000 after acquiring an additional 68,891 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FSLR shares. Mizuho boosted their price objective on First Solar from $275.00 to $278.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. 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 research note on Monday, May 19th. Guggenheim upped their price target on First Solar from $202.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Hsbc Global Res upgraded First Solar to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on First Solar from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $225.84.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 2,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.44, for a total transaction of $462,900.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 81,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,326,357.84. This represents a 2.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the company's 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 directly owned 11,369 shares in the company, valued at $1,798,689.49. This trade represents a 20.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 37,134 shares of company stock valued at $6,766,664 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Trading Down 0.9%

FSLR stock opened at $195.19 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.70, a PEG ratio of 0.39 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. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.33. 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 (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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.25 EPS. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. Research analysts anticipate 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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