Tredje AP fonden Grows Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Tredje AP fonden grew its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 13.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 17,910 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 2,091 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,156,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 214.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in First Solar by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total value of $1,021,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,739 shares of company stock worth $4,289,403 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group reduced their target price on First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup lowered their price target on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $218.00 to $259.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.08.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR stock opened at $132.81 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.96 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market cap of $14.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a fifty day moving average of $164.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.76.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

First Solar 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.