AIA Group Ltd Sells 4,483 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

AIA Group Ltd lessened its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 62.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,716 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 4,483 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in First Solar were worth $468,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 2.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,945,549,000 after buying an additional 279,424 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 4.4% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,266,552 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $927,972,000 after buying an additional 179,035 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in First Solar by 10.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,283,705 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $369,024,000 after purchasing an additional 211,755 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in First Solar by 2.6% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,236,723 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $485,528,000 after purchasing an additional 56,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its stake in First Solar by 9.4% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,102,959 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $339,817,000 after purchasing an additional 181,034 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $269.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $236.00 target price for the company. Mizuho upped their target price on First Solar from $188.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Bank of America upped their target price on First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating and set a $258.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, April 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.68.

First Solar Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ FSLR traded up $0.75 on Friday, reaching $175.04. The company had a trading volume of 3,261,030 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,881,985. The firm has a market cap of $18.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $232.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $161.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 2.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.19 by $0.06. First Solar had a return on equity of 13.80% and a net margin of 25.03%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.07) EPS. The business's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total transaction of $2,592,551.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,539,477.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 787 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $125,920.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $787,200. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total transaction of $2,592,551.85. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,539,477.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,620 shares of company stock worth $4,269,540. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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.