First Solar Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:FSLR)

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 103,077 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 113% compared to the typical daily volume of 48,484 call options.

First Solar Trading Up 8.7%

Shares of First Solar stock traded up $14.91 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $185.43. The stock had a trading volume of 6,399,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,236,857. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $156.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.63. First Solar has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $262.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $19.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 29.72% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The firm had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $863.11 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 11,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,798,689.49. This represents a 20.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of the 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 sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 8,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,246,136.85. The trade was a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,376 shares of company stock valued at $2,227,172 in the last ninety days. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. 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 worth $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 9,405 shares during the period. 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 worth $6,160,000 after purchasing an additional 3,226 shares during the period. 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 worth $23,936,000 after purchasing an additional 23,528 shares during the period. 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 worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,916 shares during the period. Finally, Ethic Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 34.2% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 17,807 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $3,138,000 after purchasing an additional 4,542 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp lowered shares of First Solar from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of First Solar from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $191.00 to $177.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Glj Research upgraded shares of First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $172.37 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $253.00 to $202.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $228.69.

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.