First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Upgraded at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $221.00 target price on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 target price (down previously from $245.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday, March 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.48.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR opened at $186.18 on Tuesday. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $116.56 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market cap of $19.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $134.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $163.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The firm had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total value of $55,710.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $624,247.20. This represents a 8.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $262,952.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 111,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,965,287.50. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,104 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,252,000 after acquiring an additional 1,192 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 23,213 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $4,091,000 after acquiring an additional 1,401 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH increased its stake in First Solar by 94.1% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 3,300 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $582,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Leibman Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in First Solar by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 17,226 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $3,036,000 after buying an additional 2,269 shares during the period. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $705,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

About First Solar

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.