First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Purchased by NEOS Investment Management LLC

NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 29.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,483 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares during the quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $966,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Sava Infond d.o.o. bought a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter worth about $335,000. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,880,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in First Solar by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 160,723 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $29,964,000 after purchasing an additional 13,761 shares during the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP boosted its holdings in First Solar by 29.9% during the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 101,683 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $17,921,000 after buying an additional 23,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in First Solar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $127.32 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $124.32 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The company has a market cap of $13.63 billion, a PE ratio of 10.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $150.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $185.17.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. Equities analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FSLR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America dropped their price target on First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $262,952.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,890 shares in the company, valued at $14,965,287.50. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 229 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $30,628.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 52,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,066,815. The trade was a 0.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158 in the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.