First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Position Lessened by Nicola Wealth Management LTD.

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. decreased its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,467,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 47.0% in the fourth quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,859 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $856,000 after buying an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 665.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,192 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $7,308,000 after buying an additional 34,074 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 36.9% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 21,446 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $5,350,000 after buying an additional 5,780 shares during the period. Paragon Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $1,240,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 595,267 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $104,910,000 after buying an additional 49,074 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $127.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. The firm has a market cap of $13.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $171.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $196.97. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $126.54 and a 52 week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $484,793.40. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on FSLR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America reduced their target price on First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Mizuho raised First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on First Solar from $297.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.