First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Truist Financial

Truist Financial upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $270.00 price target on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on FSLR. Weiss Ratings raised shares of First Solar from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen upgraded shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $196.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $318.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of First Solar from $245.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.33.

First Solar Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of FSLR opened at $179.72 on Monday. First Solar has a 12 month low of $168.60 and a 12 month high of $320.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $203.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $219.47. The firm has a market cap of $19.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.08, a PEG ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.80.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $1.02. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.02% and a net margin of 32.47%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 17.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.00, for a total value of $139,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 5,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $877,308. This trade represents a 13.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Samantha L. Sloan sold 127 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.95, for a total transaction of $28,314.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,018 shares in the company, valued at approximately $449,913.10. This trade represents a 5.92% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 16,681 shares of company stock valued at $3,756,286 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth $3,310,298,000. Hill City Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth $620,133,555. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,626,000. Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at about $200,109,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $171,043,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key First Solar News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Truist upgraded First Solar to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $270 from $229, implying roughly 50% upside from recent levels. The firm believes solar-panel pricing should remain supported into the 2030s, improving the outlook for First Solar’s earnings and cash flow. Truist sees 50% upside for First Solar as pricing supported into 2030s
• Positive Sentiment: The upgrade follows a roughly one-third decline in First Solar’s stock this year, making the shares appear more attractively valued to contrarian investors. Coverage highlighted potential catalysts from the U.S. midterm elections and possible changes to solar-policy support. This struggling solar stock has lost one-third of its value this year. Truist sees a comeback
• Positive Sentiment: Several market commentaries characterized First Solar as a potential entry point, emphasizing election-related catalysts and the possibility of a recovery after the recent selloff. First Solar: A Good Entry Point With Potential Midterms Catalysts
• Neutral Sentiment: First Solar’s latest reported quarter exceeded EPS expectations, but revenue declined year over year. The company remains profitable, although investors are weighing strong earnings performance against softer sales growth.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock remains well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and has experienced significant year-to-date weakness, indicating that investor concerns about solar demand, policy, or pricing have not been fully resolved.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc is a solar technology and manufacturing company that designs and produces photovoltaic (PV) solar modules for utility-scale power projects. Unlike conventional crystalline-silicon panels, its modules use thin-film semiconductor technology based on cadmium telluride (CdTe), which the company says can provide advantages in energy yield, temperature performance and lifecycle sustainability.

The company’s product portfolio includes its Series 6 and Series 7 thin-film solar modules, along with related services such as technical support, module recycling and end-of-life collection.