Cerity Partners LLC Acquires 2,796 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,457 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,796 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,860,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 356 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Davis Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in First Solar by 0.6% during the third quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 7,698 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its holdings in First Solar by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,172 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,068,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $455,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $207.92 on Tuesday. 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 market cap of $22.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.48. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.88 and a 52 week high of $306.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $208.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $225.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $887.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FSLR. Barclays dropped their price target on First Solar from $290.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target for the company. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $321.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $315.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.71.

First Solar 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.