Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Grows Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 85.8% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,232 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,110 shares during the quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in First Solar during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in First Solar by 591.9% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 256 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 1st quarter worth $45,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 1st quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Down 1.0%

FSLR opened at $181.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $19.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.52. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $262.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $164.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 29.72% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on FSLR shares. Wolfe Research upgraded First Solar from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $221.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of First Solar from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of First Solar from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America increased their price target on First Solar from $185.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Glj Research upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $172.37 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 8,037 shares in the company, valued at $1,246,136.85. This represents a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 11,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,798,689.49. This trade represents a 20.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,976 shares of company stock valued at $2,515,172 over the last quarter. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.