First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Position Boosted by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 716,104 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 34,738 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $178,625,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC bought a new stake in First Solar in the third quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in First Solar during the third quarter worth $29,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 411.1% during the 2nd quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna cut their price target on First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Clarkson Capital began coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $329.00 to $297.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $279.04.

First Solar Stock Up 2.3 %

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $186.05 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $212.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $225.56. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $135.88 and a one year high of $306.77. The firm has a market cap of $19.92 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $887.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About First Solar

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.