First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $192.00 target price on the solar cell manufacturer's stock, up from their prior target price of $157.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 target price (down previously from $245.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $255.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $229.19.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR traded down $0.71 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $167.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,065,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,054,107. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $116.56 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $145.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.53.

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). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $262,952.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,890 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,965,287.50. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $80,116.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,114,648.75. This represents a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,948 shares of company stock worth $2,704,927. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,200,342 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,668,919,000 after purchasing an additional 378,641 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in First Solar by 17.2% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,765,303 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $349,617,000 after buying an additional 405,457 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $469,154,000 after buying an additional 63,739 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in First Solar by 32.3% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,427,500 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $306,909,000 after buying an additional 592,444 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its position in shares of First Solar by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $336,871,000 after acquiring an additional 426,797 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company's stock.

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.