Kuntal Kumar Verma Sells 582 Shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock

Key Points

• Insider selling: First Solar insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares on May 21 at an average price of $250, worth about $145,500. The sale reduced his ownership by 10.49% and was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.
• Stock performance and recent earnings: First Solar shares rose 3.6% to $257.85, near the top of their 52-week range. The company recently reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.22 per share and revenue of $1.04 billion, both above analyst estimates.
• Analyst view: Wall Street sentiment remains mixed but constructive, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $247.40. Recent target cuts from some firms were partially offset by continued buy and overweight ratings from others.

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $145,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,241,750. This represents a 10.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Kuntal Kumar Verma also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, May 5th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 479 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $103,286.77.
• On Wednesday, April 15th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 573 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total transaction of $120,330.00.
• On Tuesday, March 17th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 180 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.53, for a total transaction of $35,915.40.
• On Monday, March 16th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 392 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.80, for a total transaction of $78,713.60.
• On Tuesday, March 10th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 408 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.70, for a total transaction of $79,845.60.
• On Monday, March 9th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,386 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.36, for a total transaction of $263,838.96.
• On Wednesday, March 4th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 728 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.95, for a total value of $143,379.60.
• On Tuesday, March 3rd, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 3,426 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total value of $671,256.18.

First Solar Trading Up 3.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $8.97 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $257.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,456,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,396,192. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.50 and a fifty-two week high of $285.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $203.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.57.

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

Institutional Trading of First Solar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC bought a new stake in First Solar during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in First Solar during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in First Solar in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in First Solar by 117.0% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FSLR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of First Solar in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of First Solar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $245.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. 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, Barclays reduced their target price on First Solar from $228.00 to $213.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $247.40.

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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