KFA Private Wealth Group LLC Trims Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

KFA Private Wealth Group LLC trimmed its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 6.1% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,537 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 99 shares during the quarter. KFA Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $254,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aberdeen Group plc raised its stake in First Solar by 12.3% during the 2nd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 142,203 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $23,540,000 after acquiring an additional 15,544 shares during the last quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 3.3% during the second quarter. Grace & White Inc. NY now owns 81,875 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $13,554,000 after purchasing an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 18.6% during the second quarter. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP now owns 2,265 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 44.0% during the second quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,743 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Triodos Investment Management BV raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 10.3% during the second quarter. Triodos Investment Management BV now owns 274,100 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $45,342,000 after purchasing an additional 25,600 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Solar Trading Down 3.6%

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $225.91 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $237.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market cap of $24.23 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50-day moving average of $206.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.33.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.50. First Solar had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 28.95%.The firm had revenue of $1.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.25 EPS. First Solar’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.47, for a total value of $4,434,958.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,978 shares in the company, valued at $16,317,279.66. This trade represents a 21.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 30,715 shares of company stock valued at $5,733,305. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $241.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday. They set an “in-line” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Glj Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $214.06 price target (up from $172.53) on shares of First Solar in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $275.00 price target (up from $255.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on First Solar from $203.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.04.

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.