First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Acquired by Joule Financial LLC

Joule Financial LLC lifted its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,081 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the quarter. Joule Financial LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,018,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Electron Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 81,947.0% in the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,729,223,000 after acquiring an additional 7,660,409 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its position in First Solar by 11.1% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $472,963,000 after purchasing an additional 279,719 shares during the last quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP purchased a new position in First Solar during the second quarter worth about $53,752,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in First Solar by 2,429.1% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 174,530 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $39,350,000 after purchasing an additional 167,629 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forest Avenue Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,962,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on First Solar from $262.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $343.00 to $321.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $283.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, 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 sale, the insider now owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 1,766 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total transaction of $382,339.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $108,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,885 shares of company stock worth $2,405,757 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR stock traded down $1.44 during trading on Friday, reaching $201.93. 361,056 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,367,861. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company has a market cap of $21.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.32, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $227.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.24.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.56. The firm 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%. First Solar’s quarterly revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About First Solar

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.