OFI Invest Asset Management Has $20.02 Million Stake in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• OFI Invest Asset Management reduced its stake in First Solar, Inc. by 6.9%, holding $20.02 million worth of shares after selling 9,016 during the 2nd quarter.
• First Solar reported earnings of $3.18 per share, surpassing forecasts by $0.50, with a net margin of 28.95% and revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter.
• Several brokerages, including HSBC Global, have upgraded First Solar's stock rating to "strong buy", reflecting positive sentiment with a consensus target price currently at $231.04.

OFI Invest Asset Management trimmed its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 120,927 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 9,016 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management owned about 0.11% of First Solar worth $20,018,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,437 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $3,216,000 after acquiring an additional 2,510 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 9,405 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 48,722 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $6,160,000 after acquiring an additional 3,226 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 189,320 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $23,936,000 after acquiring an additional 23,528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 24.7% during the 1st quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 9,682 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,224,000 after acquiring an additional 1,916 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Trading Down 3.6%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $225.91 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $116.56 and a 1-year high of $237.20. The company has a market cap of $24.23 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a 50-day moving average of $206.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.64.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.50. First Solar had a net margin of 28.95% and a return on equity of 15.57%. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.25 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on FSLR. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of First Solar to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $275.00 price target (up from $255.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Glj Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $214.06 price target (up from $172.53) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of First Solar from $194.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $231.04.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.47, for a total value of $4,434,958.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,978 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,317,279.66. The trade was a 21.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,715 shares of company stock valued at $5,733,305. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

About First Solar

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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