First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 25.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 135,734 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 46,617 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in First Solar were worth $23,922,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. Finally, Financial Avengers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar during the third quarter valued at about $77,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $262,952.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,965,287.50. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $484,793.40. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158 over the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on FSLR. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $297.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $280.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.42.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $136.23 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $146.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $182.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.60 and a 12-month high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted 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). The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

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.