CENTRAL TRUST Co Sells 786 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

CENTRAL TRUST Co trimmed its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,481 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 786 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Solar by 0.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,257,053 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,068,991,000 after buying an additional 105,236 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 81,947.0% during the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,729,223,000 after acquiring an additional 7,660,409 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 11.1% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $472,963,000 after purchasing an additional 279,719 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of First Solar by 8.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 795,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $179,478,000 after purchasing an additional 64,265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in First Solar by 0.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 652,354 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $147,080,000 after purchasing an additional 2,378 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Solar Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of FSLR opened at $196.04 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $224.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $223.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $939.71 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.85 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.53 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $769,896. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $110,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $769,896. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,885 shares of company stock worth $2,405,757. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FSLR has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $262.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Citigroup raised First Solar from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $254.00 in a research note on Tuesday. William Blair assumed coverage on First Solar in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on First Solar from $271.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $288.46.

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.