First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $166.10 and last traded at $167.42, with a volume of 200,390 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $171.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on FSLR shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of First Solar in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Argus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Glj Research dropped their price target on shares of First Solar from $315.00 to $250.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. TD Cowen raised shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.73.

First Solar Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $192.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $218.37. The stock has a market cap of $18.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.37, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.80.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $1.02. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.02% and a net margin of 32.47%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 3,425 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.95, for a total value of $749,903.75. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 7,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,635,775.45. This trade represents a 31.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, General Counsel Jason Dymbort sold 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $922,706.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 5,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,402,513.12. The trade was a 39.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 16,681 shares of company stock worth $3,756,286 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 29.3% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,138,473 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $224,540,000 after purchasing an additional 258,204 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth $4,019,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 7.0% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,535,836 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $362,396,000 after buying an additional 100,694 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,121,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in First Solar by 15.0% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 683,112 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $161,187,000 after buying an additional 89,214 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc is a vertically integrated solar technology and manufacturing company that designs, manufactures and sells photovoltaic (PV) solar modules. Its modules use advanced thin-film semiconductor technology based on cadmium telluride (CdTe), rather than the crystalline-silicon technology used by most solar manufacturers. The company serves utility-scale solar developers, commercial and industrial customers, and other large-scale energy users.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, First Solar operates research and development, manufacturing and recycling facilities in the United States and internationally.