Delta Global Management LP Makes New Investment in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Delta Global Management LP bought a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 17,480 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,566,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $392,040,000. Viking Global Investors LP grew its position in shares of First Solar by 60.6% during the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $375,122,000 after purchasing an additional 854,919 shares in the last quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 2,663.8% during the 4th quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 666,307 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $174,059,000 after purchasing an additional 642,199 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in shares of First Solar by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,025,835 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $459,917,000 after purchasing an additional 564,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,721,979 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,026,108,000 after purchasing an additional 464,130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FSLR. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $252.00 to $237.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $300.00 to $245.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $243.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of First Solar from $286.00 to $303.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.99.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $273.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $233.52 and a 200-day moving average of $233.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.67, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.50 and a 12 month high of $320.95.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 498 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total value of $107,383.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 30,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,622,428.56. This represents a 1.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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 the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.21, for a total transaction of $2,314,842.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 95,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,189,465.08. The trade was a 9.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 32,466 shares of company stock worth $8,014,105 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Profile

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.