National Bank of Canada FI Has $10.41 Million Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

National Bank of Canada FI reduced its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 75.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,465 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 190,062 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned about 0.06% of First Solar worth $10,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Baystate Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Estabrook Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, USCF Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Price Performance

First Solar stock opened at $190.72 on Thursday. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $232.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $169.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.14.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. The firm had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $108,640.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $108,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total value of $236,640.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,467,524.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,620 shares of company stock valued at $4,663,000. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on FSLR shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Bank of America increased their price target on First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Guggenheim dropped their price target on First Solar from $359.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of First Solar from $196.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $238.16.

First Solar Profile

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.