First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Earns “Buy” Rating from Roth Capital

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities researchers at Roth Capital in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $300.00 target price on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Roth Capital’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 47.91% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on FSLR. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $255.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $213.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. HSBC raised their target price on shares of First Solar from $211.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on First Solar from $252.00 to $237.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $257.10.

First Solar Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $202.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $248.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $226.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.73. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $171.99 and a fifty-two week high of $320.95.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 30.73%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.95 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that First Solar will post 17.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 420 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $90,564.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 10,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,349,504.48. The trade was a 3.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 10,628 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.60, for a total transaction of $2,929,076.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,557,075.20. This represents a 30.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 31,893 shares of company stock worth $7,893,775. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in First Solar during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in First Solar by 117.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Roth Capital reaffirmed its buy rating on First Solar and set a $300 price target, implying meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary highlighted record U.S. solar power output and rising electricity demand from AI data centers, which supports the broader solar demand narrative and could benefit First Solar over time. 24/7 Wall St.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms, including Rosen, Howard G. Smith, Schall, Kaplan Fox, Faruqi & Faruqi, and others, reminded investors about pending First Solar securities-fraud class actions and the August 24 lead-plaintiff deadline. PR Newswire
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reporting showed no meaningful update, with the latest filing indicating zero shares reported short and a days-to-cover ratio of 0.0, so it does not appear to be a current market driver.
• Negative Sentiment: The ongoing securities-fraud litigation headlines create a legal overhang that may pressure the shares until there is more clarity on the case outcome.

First Solar Company Profile

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.