First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Acquired by OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd

OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd raised its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 53.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,802 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 6,905 shares during the period. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 214.0% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Financial Avengers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth about $77,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $129.34 on Thursday. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.96 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $158.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $189.31.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were 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 owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $30,628.75. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at $7,066,815. This represents a 0.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on FSLR shares. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target (down from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.08.

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.