Woodline Partners LP Takes $1.13 Million Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 6,429 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $1,133,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,324 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $586,000 after acquiring an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Twinbeech Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,373,000. Tairen Capital Ltd raised its holdings in First Solar by 150.0% during the 4th quarter. Tairen Capital Ltd now owns 25,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $4,406,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH raised its holdings in First Solar by 147.9% during the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 2,749 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 1,640 shares during the period. Finally, Shell Asset Management Co. raised its holdings in First Solar by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 3,333 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $587,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 8,037 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,246,136.85. The trade was a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $30,628.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at $7,066,815. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,851 shares of company stock worth $2,188,525. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Solar Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of FSLR traded up $3.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $159.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,339,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,050,353. The company has a fifty day moving average of $140.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $160.85. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The company has a market cap of $17.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). The firm had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on FSLR shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on First Solar from $267.00 to $240.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on First Solar from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $255.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.37.

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.