Redburn Atlantic Begins Coverage on First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) in a research note released on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a neutral rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on FSLR. StockNews.com upgraded First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Mizuho upgraded First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.08.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $130.90 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $170.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $196.30. The company has a market capitalization of $14.01 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. First Solar has a twelve month low of $124.96 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

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

Institutional Trading of First Solar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 214.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 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 worth $47,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Institutional investors 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.