Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) Upgraded to "Hold" by StockNews.com

Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Thursday.

CSIQ has been the subject of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Canadian Solar from $28.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Canadian Solar in a report on Monday, March 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Canadian Solar from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Canadian Solar from $28.00 to $23.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian Solar currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.78.

Canadian Solar Stock Performance

Shares of Canadian Solar stock traded down $0.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $16.58. 3,224,239 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,314,294. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.04. Canadian Solar has a 12 month low of $16.26 and a 12 month high of $45.29. The stock's fifty day moving average is $20.34 and its 200 day moving average is $21.75. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 4.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.26.

Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The solar energy provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.69 billion. Canadian Solar had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 8.31%. Canadian Solar's revenue was down 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Canadian Solar will post 2.57 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian Solar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Green Alpha Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Canadian Solar by 1.9% during the first quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 41,136 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Canadian Solar by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,983,169 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $52,019,000 after buying an additional 18,810 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its stake in Canadian Solar by 29,184.0% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 7,321 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $193,000 after buying an additional 7,296 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Canadian Solar by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 212,186 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $5,566,000 after buying an additional 36,437 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Canadian Solar by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 15,923 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 3,173 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.36% of the company's stock.

About Canadian Solar

Canadian Solar Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells solar ingots, wafers, cells, modules, and other solar power and battery storage products in Asia, the Americas, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Canadian Solar Inc (CSI) Solar and Global Energy.

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