Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. cut its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,350 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 9,252 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.08% of First Solar worth $19,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.5% during the second quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,172 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,068,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. raised its position in First Solar by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 3,232 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 1,463 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $247,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 24.9% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 311 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Family Legacy Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 1.4% during the first quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 4,950 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $836,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,896. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $922,740. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,896. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,506 shares of company stock valued at $2,827,217 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on First Solar from $262.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of First Solar from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Clarkson Capital assumed coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $270.00 price target for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.25.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $235.95 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $129.21 and a 12-month high of $306.77. The firm has a market cap of $25.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.44. The company’s 50-day moving average is $220.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.11. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $939.71 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.6 EPS for the current year.

First Solar 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.