Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Acquires 2,225 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 239.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,153 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,225 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Saturna Capital Corp raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 2.5% during the third quarter. Saturna Capital Corp now owns 5,204 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,298,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,162 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,537,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Simmons Bank bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth $225,000. First Heartland Consultants Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the third quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 6.4% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 244,140 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $60,898,000 after acquiring an additional 14,597 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FSLR has been the topic of a number of research reports. William Blair started coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna cut their price target on First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on First Solar from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.50.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR opened at $187.36 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $215.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.99. The stock has a market cap of $20.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.48. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $135.88 and a one year high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its 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). The firm had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.50 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.16 EPS for the current year.

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.