Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Makes New $279,000 Investment in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,581 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $279,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Man Group plc boosted its stake in First Solar by 49.0% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 43,805 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $7,720,000 after purchasing an additional 14,406 shares during the period. Nia Impact Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of First Solar by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Nia Impact Advisors LLC now owns 35,675 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $6,287,000 after buying an additional 2,080 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV raised its stake in First Solar by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 12,730 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $2,325,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 931,774 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $164,216,000 after purchasing an additional 42,786 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in First Solar by 212.4% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 79,585 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $14,027,000 after acquiring an additional 54,109 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FSLR. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on First Solar from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer lowered First Solar from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wolfe Research upgraded First Solar from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Citigroup cut their price objective on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $226.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,695 shares in the company, valued at $624,247.20. The trade was a 8.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR traded up $2.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $167.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,087,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,116,252. The business's 50-day moving average price is $135.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $162.64. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The stock has a market cap of $17.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business 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 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.