First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target Raised to $280.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target raised by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $215.00 to $280.00 in a research note released on Friday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a buy rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

FSLR has been the topic of several other research reports. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of First Solar from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of First Solar from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $359.00 to $356.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Roth Mkm reiterated a buy rating and set a $320.00 price target (up from $230.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of First Solar from $195.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $267.52.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $222.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.84 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $233.50 and a 200 day moving average of $185.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a current ratio of 2.41. First Solar has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total transaction of $4,409,049.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at $8,419,797.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Georges Antoun sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.00, for a total transaction of $422,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 37,412 shares in the company, valued at $6,584,512. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total transaction 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,490 shares of company stock valued at $13,301,803. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Norges Bank purchased a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at $298,123,000. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in 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 buying an additional 351,540 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in First Solar by 504.1% in 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 buying an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its position in First Solar by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $472,963,000 after buying an additional 279,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in First Solar by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,945,549,000 after buying an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.