Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 13,761 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 160,723 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,761 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $29,964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Korea Investment CORP lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 29.9% in the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 101,683 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $17,921,000 after acquiring an additional 23,383 shares during the last quarter. CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $54,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,259,697,000 after buying an additional 120,289 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 53,675 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $9,460,000 after buying an additional 8,167 shares during the period. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 3,306 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $583,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $127.32 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.97, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $124.32 and a one year high of $306.77. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $150.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.79.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 380 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 value of $50,825.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 17,594 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,353,197.50. This represents a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of the firm’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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,965,287.50. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FSLR shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price (down from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.08.

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.