First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-two brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation, twenty-five have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $229.19.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Glj Research raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $172.37 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $236.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $236.00 to $204.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $80,116.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,717 shares in the company, valued at $6,114,648.75. The trade was a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $30,628.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,066,815. This represents a 0.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 17,948 shares of company stock worth $2,704,927. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $317,399,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the first quarter valued at about $114,730,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 16,857.8% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 759,033 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $95,965,000 after acquiring an additional 754,557 shares in the last quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 17,404.5% in the fourth quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 722,760 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $127,379,000 after acquiring an additional 718,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 32.3% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,427,500 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $306,909,000 after acquiring an additional 592,444 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Trading Up 2.0%

FSLR opened at $167.86 on Thursday. First Solar has a 1-year low of $116.56 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $145.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.00 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.53.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.