First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.30 EPS

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30, Briefing.com reports. The business had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 13.80% and a net margin of 25.03%. The business’s revenue was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. First Solar updated its FY24 guidance to $13.00-14.00 EPS and its FY 2024 guidance to 13.000-14.000 EPS.

First Solar Trading Up 1.6 %

FSLR traded up $2.93 during trading on Thursday, hitting $180.51. 3,452,249 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,079,837. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $164.89 and a 200 day moving average of $157.84. First Solar has a 12-month low of $129.21 and a 12-month high of $232.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 2.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FSLR. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $224.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Friday, April 19th. UBS Group upped their price objective on First Solar from $250.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho raised their target price on First Solar from $196.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on First Solar from $209.50 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $238.16.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $108,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 14,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,315,680. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $108,640.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,473 shares in the company, valued at $2,315,680. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total value of $236,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,467,524.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,620 shares of company stock valued at $4,269,540. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.