HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 4,264 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 77,154 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,264 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.07% of First Solar worth $17,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First Solar in the second quarter worth $212,621,000. Viking Global Investors LP increased its position in shares of First Solar by 60.6% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $375,122,000 after buying an additional 854,919 shares in the last quarter. Atreides Management LP acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth $65,134,000. Ariel Investments LLC bought a new position in First Solar during the second quarter worth about $50,869,000. Finally, Peconic Partners LLC bought a new position in First Solar during the second quarter worth about $49,662,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on First Solar from $150.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Glj Research boosted their price objective on First Solar from $214.06 to $314.43 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on First Solar from $217.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $275.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.61.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $233.30 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $285.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $246.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.41. The firm has a market cap of $25.04 billion, a PE ratio of 17.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

First Solar Company Profile

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin?film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility?scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.