First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Down 0.6%

Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) dropped 0.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $222.76 and last traded at $225.76. Approximately 417,436 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 2,498,056 shares. The stock had previously closed at $227.12.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna upped their target price on First Solar from $258.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on First Solar from $240.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. DZ Bank lowered First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $270.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on First Solar from $248.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on First Solar from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $271.92.

First Solar Stock Up 2.1 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $240.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $188.63. 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 company has a market capitalization of $24.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.44.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.73, for a total transaction of $393,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,908 shares in the company, valued at $2,736,120.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 2,000 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.73, for a total value of $393,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,908 shares in the company, valued at $2,736,120.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $421,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $922,740. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,153 shares of company stock worth $12,540,428 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FSLR. Integrated Advisors Network LLC lifted its holdings in First Solar by 27.8% in the third quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,852 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in First Solar by 50.8% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 626,013 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $101,157,000 after acquiring an additional 210,947 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in First Solar by 10.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,283,705 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $369,024,000 after acquiring an additional 211,755 shares during the last quarter. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in First Solar in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in First Solar by 2.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,945,549,000 after acquiring an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.