Soros Fund Management LLC Takes $38.18 Million Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 216,642 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $38,181,000. Soros Fund Management LLC owned about 0.20% of First Solar as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Virtu Financial LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 38.5% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 8,041 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $2,006,000 after buying an additional 2,235 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in First Solar by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 12,449 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $3,105,000 after buying an additional 1,199 shares in the last quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC bought a new position in First Solar during the third quarter worth about $935,000. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 33.3% during the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 24,553 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $6,125,000 after purchasing an additional 6,135 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in First Solar by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 131,634 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $32,835,000 after acquiring an additional 12,439 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group cut First Solar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $202.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America cut their target price on First Solar from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $223.87.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $126.57. 4,491,180 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,857,949. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $131.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $166.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 period last year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,589,129.27. The trade was a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the company's 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 sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $484,793.40. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158 over the last three months. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.