EP Wealth Advisors LLC Has $228,000 Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,293 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 95 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at $317,399,000. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in First Solar by 17,404.5% during the 4th quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 722,760 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $127,379,000 after purchasing an additional 718,631 shares during the last quarter. Mirova US LLC lifted its holdings in First Solar by 961.0% during the 4th quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $113,906,000 after purchasing an additional 585,394 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in First Solar by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $336,871,000 after purchasing an additional 426,797 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in First Solar by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,248,552 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $220,045,000 after purchasing an additional 293,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

First Solar stock opened at $191.60 on Wednesday. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $132.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $163.45. The stock has a market cap of $20.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). The firm had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Seaport Res Ptn raised First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Glj Research raised First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $172.37 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $202.00 to $127.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Mizuho raised First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $218.00 to $259.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their target price on First Solar from $253.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $223.76.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $50,825.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 17,594 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,353,197.50. The trade was a 2.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $30,628.75. Following the sale, the insider now owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,066,815. This trade represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. Insiders own 0.48% 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.