Forty three Eighteen Advisors LLC Takes Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Forty three Eighteen Advisors LLC bought a new position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,720 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $711,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FSLR. Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in First Solar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in First Solar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC purchased a new position in First Solar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 117.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 10,628 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.60, for a total transaction of $2,929,076.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 23,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,557,075.20. The trade was a 30.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $107,383.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,622,428.56. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 32,466 shares of company stock valued at $8,014,105 in the last 90 days. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR stock opened at $257.70 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.65, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.26 and a 12 month high of $320.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $238.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $233.45.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The business’s revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.95 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of First Solar from $269.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on First Solar in a report on Tuesday. They set an “underperform” rating and a $217.00 target price for the company. Mizuho raised their target price on First Solar from $243.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Evercore lifted their price target on First Solar from $212.00 to $219.00 in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $249.78.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.