First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Sold by Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. trimmed its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 75.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,686 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 14,481 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.'s holdings in First Solar were worth $834,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 31.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its stake in First Solar by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 475 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on First Solar in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price target on First Solar in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $223.87.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total value of $1,021,085.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR traded up $3.97 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $130.54. 3,393,776 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,857,118. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $116.56 and a one year 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 firm has a market cap of $14.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.24, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $131.03 and a 200-day moving average of $165.85.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.55). The business had revenue of $844.57 million during 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%. First Solar's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Solar 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.