First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLRGet Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-seven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have assigned a hold recommendation, twenty-two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $266.0607.

Several equities analysts have commented on FSLR shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on First Solar from $217.00 to $197.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Evercore reissued a “positive” rating and set a $218.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on First Solar from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on FSLR

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, General Counsel Jason Dymbort sold 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $922,706.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 5,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,402,513.12. This trade represents a 39.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $160,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 5,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,168,400. This trade represents a 12.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 15,881 shares of company stock worth $3,617,086 in the last 90 days. 0.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 100.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 61,768 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $14,575,000 after purchasing an additional 30,967 shares during the period. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth about $232,000. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of First Solar by 8.2% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 254,763 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $60,114,000 after buying an additional 19,358 shares during the last quarter. C WorldWide Group Holding A S acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the second quarter valued at about $7,432,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 5.7% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 29,267 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $6,906,000 after buying an additional 1,566 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $203.10 on Friday. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $182.99 and a fifty-two week high of $320.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $217.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $222.08. The firm has a market cap of $21.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.74.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLRGet Free Report) last released 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 company had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that First Solar will post 17.77 EPS for the current year.

First Solar Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

First Solar, Inc is a renewable energy technology company that designs and manufactures photovoltaic (PV) solar modules. Unlike conventional crystalline-silicon panels, its modules use thin-film semiconductor technology based on cadmium telluride (CdTe). The company also provides supporting services, including project development, engineering, procurement and construction support, operations and maintenance, and module recycling.

First Solar primarily serves utility-scale solar developers, system owners and operators, commercial customers, and government entities.

See Also

Analyst Recommendations for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

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