First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Down 0.3%

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)’s share price traded down 0.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $218.18 and last traded at $219.77. 710,375 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 2,499,877 shares. The stock had previously closed at $220.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $274.00 price objective (up from $209.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Susquehanna raised their target price on First Solar from $258.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott cut First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $273.17.

First Solar Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $23.17 billion, a PE ratio of 23.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $193.53.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.19 million. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. First Solar’s revenue was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. Equities analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.58 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $421,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $922,740. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were 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 owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at $8,419,797.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $421,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $922,740. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 51,153 shares of company stock worth $12,540,428. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $298,123,000. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in First Solar by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,454,499 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $422,861,000 after acquiring an additional 351,540 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its holdings in First Solar by 11.1% in the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $472,963,000 after acquiring an additional 279,719 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its stake in First Solar by 2,009.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 180,681 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $31,128,000 after acquiring an additional 172,117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bull Oak Capital LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 304,592.2% during the 4th quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $26,771,000 after acquiring an additional 155,342 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

About First Solar

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.