First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Trading 4.7% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) was up 4.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Susquehanna raised their price target on the stock from $258.00 to $285.00. Susquehanna currently has a positive rating on the stock. First Solar traded as high as $230.99 and last traded at $226.92. Approximately 1,677,258 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 2,495,901 shares. The stock had previously closed at $216.73.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of First Solar from $227.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.12.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $421,460.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $922,740. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $338,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,193,800. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $421,460.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $922,740. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,490 shares of company stock worth $13,301,803 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its stake in First Solar by 24.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 311 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth about $537,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 54.9% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,698 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $383,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 3,232 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clean Yield Group boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 35.6% in the 1st quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 27,034 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $4,563,000 after buying an additional 7,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Up 2.9 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $234.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market capitalization of $23.87 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.44.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released 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. The business had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $718.19 million. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. The company’s revenue was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.58 EPS for the current year.

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.