Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 10,118 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Key Points

• Van ECK Associates increased its First Solar stake by 18.9%, buying 10,118 shares to own 63,787 shares valued at approximately $15.1 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 92.08% of FSLR.
• First Solar reported quarterly earnings of $3.92 per share, beating the $2.90 analyst consensus, while revenue was $1.06 billion, down 3.4% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $266.27, compared with the stock’s reported opening price of $201.90.

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,787 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after purchasing an additional 10,118 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.06% of First Solar worth $15,051,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,310,298,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,919,991 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $761,396,000 after buying an additional 24,206 shares in the last quarter. Hill City Capital LP purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $620,133,555. Viking Global Investors LP grew its holdings in First Solar by 60.6% during the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $375,122,000 after buying an additional 854,919 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its position in shares of First Solar by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,215,461 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $578,791,000 after buying an additional 189,626 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR opened at $201.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.76. First Solar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $182.99 and a 1 year high of $320.95. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $222.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.22.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.90 by $1.02. First Solar had a net margin of 32.47% and a return on equity of 18.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.18 earnings per share. First Solar's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.51, for a total transaction of $1,550,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,642 shares in the company, valued at $1,692,779.42. This trade represents a 47.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Jason E. Dymbort sold 3,700 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $922,706.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 5,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,402,513.12. The trade was a 39.68% 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. Insiders have sold 15,081 shares of company stock worth $3,457,086 over the last three months. 0.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore reissued a "positive" rating and issued a $218.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday, August 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $318.00 target price on shares of First Solar and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Oppenheimer reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, July 31st. Mizuho set a $324.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $266.27.

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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