Polar Capital Holdings Plc bought a new position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR – Free Report) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 766,028 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $200,109,000. First Solar accounts for about 0.8% of Polar Capital Holdings Plc’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding.
Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth about $392,040,000. Viking Global Investors LP increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 60.6% in the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $375,122,000 after purchasing an additional 854,919 shares during the last quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2,663.8% in the fourth quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 666,307 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $174,059,000 after purchasing an additional 642,199 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 38.6% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,025,835 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $459,917,000 after purchasing an additional 564,032 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 3.5% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,721,979 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,026,108,000 after purchasing an additional 464,130 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FSLR. Zacks Research raised First Solar from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on First Solar from $269.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on First Solar from $286.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on First Solar from $300.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, HSBC boosted their price objective on First Solar from $211.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $250.99.
Insider Activity
In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $145,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 4,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,241,750. This represents a 10.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 566 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total value of $122,046.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,294,918.34. This represents a 2.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,466 shares of company stock valued at $8,014,105. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
First Solar Trading Down 3.3%
Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $264.36 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $234.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 2.15. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $135.50 and a 1-year high of $320.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.08, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.71.
First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 30.73%.The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.61 EPS for the current year.
First Solar Profile
First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.
Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.
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