First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• First Solar has a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" from 32 covering analysts, with an average 12-month price target of about $251.37.
• The company recently delivered a strong quarterly report, beating EPS estimates with $3.22 per share on $1.04 billion in revenue, while revenue rose 23.6% year over year.
• Institutional ownership remains very high at 92.08%, and recent activity included major holdings increases by firms such as Norges Bank, Viking Global Investors, and Amundi.

Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the thirty-two analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $251.3704.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on FSLR shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $286.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $258.00 to $236.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of First Solar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, insider Georges Antoun sold 566 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $122,046.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 19,918 shares in the company, valued at $4,294,918.34. This trade represents a 2.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $145,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 4,967 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,241,750. This represents a 10.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 97,827 shares of company stock valued at $20,006,930 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $392,040,000. Viking Global Investors LP increased its position in shares of First Solar by 60.6% during the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $375,122,000 after acquiring an additional 854,919 shares during the last quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $200,109,000. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. increased its position in shares of First Solar by 2,663.8% during the fourth quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 666,307 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $174,059,000 after acquiring an additional 642,199 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in shares of First Solar by 38.6% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,025,835 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $459,917,000 after acquiring an additional 564,032 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $273.67 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $209.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $230.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. First Solar has a 52 week low of $135.50 and a 52 week high of $285.99.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.95 earnings per share. First Solar's revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that First Solar will post 17.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Solar Company 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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