First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Trading Down 1.4% – Here’s Why

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)’s share price was down 1.4% on Monday . The company traded as low as $134.63 and last traded at $137.16. Approximately 823,882 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 2,679,635 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.13.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FSLR. Barclays dropped their price objective on First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective (down previously from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.08.

First Solar Stock Down 4.3 %

The stock has a market cap of $14.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $167.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.40.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total value of $1,021,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $484,793.40. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,259,697,000 after acquiring an additional 120,289 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in First Solar by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,236,383,000 after purchasing an additional 108,984 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First Solar by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $469,154,000 after purchasing an additional 63,739 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of First Solar by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,359,846 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $415,899,000 after purchasing an additional 262,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,835,056 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $323,410,000 after buying an additional 223,933 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.