Achmea Investment Management B.V. Cuts Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. lessened its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 67.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,746 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 7,693 shares during the quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 9,210 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,623,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Doliver Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 4,713 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $831,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,090 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 1,450 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $362,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $132.51 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.19 billion, a PE ratio of 11.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $162.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $191.33. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $124.96 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. The trade was a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,695 shares in the company, valued at $624,247.20. This trade represents a 8.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 30,739 shares of company stock worth $4,289,403. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FSLR. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target (down from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target (down from $260.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.08.

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.