First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Bought by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,975 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,208 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $5,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of FSLR. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 81,947.0% in the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,729,223,000 after purchasing an additional 7,660,409 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.9% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $434,977,000 after buying an additional 15,890 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 8.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 795,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $179,478,000 after buying an additional 64,265 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in First Solar by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 716,104 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $178,625,000 after acquiring an additional 34,738 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in First Solar by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 652,354 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $147,080,000 after purchasing an additional 2,378 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $192.32 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $211.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.80. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.88 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $274.00 to $257.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised First Solar from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $254.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.04.

First Solar Company 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.