Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas Has $7.54 Million Holdings in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas cut its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 55.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 28,847 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 36,169 shares during the quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas’ holdings in First Solar were worth $7,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FSLR. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $273.51 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $233.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.56. The firm has a market cap of $29.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.70. First Solar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.50 and a 1 year high of $320.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 2.15.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.95 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.61 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $205.00 price target (down from $264.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $320.00 to $253.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $205.00 to $187.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $250.99.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, insider Georges Antoun sold 566 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $122,046.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,294,918.34. The trade was a 2.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 9,926 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.21, for a total transaction of $2,314,842.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 95,148 shares in the company, valued at $22,189,465.08. This represents a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,466 shares of company stock valued at $8,014,105. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.