Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 2,301 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,867 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 2,301 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $7,699,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Electron Capital Partners LLC increased 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 acquiring an additional 7,660,409 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in First Solar by 75.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $523,166,000 after purchasing an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in First Solar by 1,757.2% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 546,193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $136,242,000 after purchasing an additional 516,783 shares in the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP lifted its position in First Solar by 993.4% during the third quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 322,936 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $80,553,000 after purchasing an additional 293,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth $67,652,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price target (down previously from $286.00) on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on First Solar from $329.00 to $297.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. William Blair began coverage on First Solar in a report on Thursday, August 29th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.71.

First Solar Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $196.32 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.88 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $200.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $224.38.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted 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 net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current year.

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.