First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $254.00 price target on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, up from their prior price target of $200.00.

FSLR has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on First Solar from $271.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on First Solar from $325.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Roth Mkm reduced their price objective on First Solar from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $288.46.

First Solar Trading Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $196.04 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. First Solar has a twelve month low of $129.21 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $224.60 and its 200 day moving average is $223.18.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $939.71 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The firm’s revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 1,766 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total value of $382,339.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,250. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $769,896. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,885 shares of company stock valued at $2,405,757 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Electron Capital Partners LLC raised its position in First Solar by 81,947.0% during the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,729,223,000 after purchasing an additional 7,660,409 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised 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 valued at $472,963,000 after purchasing an additional 279,719 shares during the period. Anomaly Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in First Solar during the second quarter valued at approximately $53,752,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in First Solar by 24,844.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 217,512 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $542,560,000 after purchasing an additional 216,640 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in First Solar by 2,429.1% during the second 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 period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.