Bank of America Boosts First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target to $343.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its target price increased by Bank of America from $320.00 to $343.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on FSLR. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered First Solar from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on First Solar from $262.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $248.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $283.46.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR opened at $240.45 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $25.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.44. First Solar has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $221.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $211.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $939.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $110,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $110,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,896. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,885 shares of company stock worth $2,405,757. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $69,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in First Solar by 1,176.5% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,875 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,907,000 after purchasing an additional 15,553 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in First Solar by 33.8% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 12,826 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,210,000 after purchasing an additional 3,239 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in First Solar by 26.6% in the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,173 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 3,301.4% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 44,627 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $7,688,000 after buying an additional 43,315 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.