Capital Research Global Investors Decreases Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Capital Research Global Investors lessened its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,940,623 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 2,246 shares during the quarter. Capital Research Global Investors owned approximately 2.75% of First Solar worth $506,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Estabrook Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the third quarter worth $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, USCF Advisers LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FSLR. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $236.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $274.00 price objective (up previously from $209.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America upped their price target on First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and set a $258.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.84.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In related news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total transaction of $4,409,049.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,419,797.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total value of $4,409,049.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,419,797.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,917.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,985 shares of company stock worth $13,559,316 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR traded up $6.89 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $273.06. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,895,581 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,383,848. The company has a market cap of $29.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a current ratio of 2.41. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $199.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.11. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $286.60.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. The business had revenue of $794.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Solar Company 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.