Point72 Asset Management L.P. Takes Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 179,956 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $31,715,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. owned about 0.17% of First Solar at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. bought a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $54,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FSLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer lowered First Solar from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on First Solar in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. StockNews.com lowered First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Susquehanna reduced their price target on First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on First Solar from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $226.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $484,793.40. This trade represents a 67.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Solar Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR traded up $2.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $167.22. 6,087,508 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,116,252. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. The stock has a market cap of $17.93 billion, a PE ratio of 14.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46. The company's fifty day moving average is $135.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.64. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.56 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current 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.