First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Gap Down to $261.33

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $261.33, but opened at $255.29. First Solar shares last traded at $254.81, with a volume of 307,423 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FSLR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on First Solar from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $274.00 target price (up from $209.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on First Solar from $248.00 to $331.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $265.72.

First Solar Stock Up 0.1 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $219.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market capitalization of $28.01 billion, a PE ratio of 27.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.47.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $794.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.19 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $338,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at $2,193,800. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $338,975.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at $2,193,800. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total value of $4,409,049.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at $8,419,797.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,269 shares of company stock worth $13,287,671 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $298,123,000. Clean Energy Transition LLP lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 948.8% during the third quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP now owns 1,186,646 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $191,750,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,500 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,454,499 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $422,861,000 after purchasing an additional 351,540 shares in the last quarter. Covalis Capital LLP grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 615.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covalis Capital LLP now owns 408,012 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $65,931,000 after purchasing an additional 350,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in First Solar by 504.1% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 399,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $68,852,000 after purchasing an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.