First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Holdings Decreased by Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC reduced its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 267,516 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 2,276 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $47,147,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in First Solar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth $54,000. Finally, Financial Avengers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the third quarter worth $77,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $30,628.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,066,815. The trade was a 0.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Jason E. Dymbort sold 363 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $48,551.25. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 22,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,979,013.75. This represents a 1.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on FSLR. UBS Group lowered their target price on First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on First Solar in a report on Monday, March 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.42.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $128.69 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $13.78 billion, a PE ratio of 11.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $145.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.88. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.60 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results 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 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 analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. Analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 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.