First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Raised to “Hold” at StockNews.com

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on FSLR. Bank of America decreased their target price on First Solar from $321.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. DZ Bank raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.50.

First Solar Stock Down 0.1 %

First Solar stock opened at $182.13 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $19.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.69, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.48. First Solar has a 52-week low of $135.88 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $217.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $225.37.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. First Solar’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.50 EPS. Equities analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.16 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Electron Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 7,660,409 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 1,757.2% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 546,193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $136,242,000 after buying an additional 516,783 shares during the last quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth $53,752,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in First Solar by 24,844.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 217,512 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $542,560,000 after acquiring an additional 216,640 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 167,629 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.