First Solar’s (FSLR) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Truist Financial

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Truist Financial in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $245.00 price objective on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $285.00. Truist Financial’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 90.53% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on FSLR. UBS Group cut their target price on First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target (down from $260.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $260.42.

First Solar Trading Up 0.8 %

FSLR stock traded up $1.02 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $128.59. The company had a trading volume of 642,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,642,177. The stock has a market cap of $13.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.07, a PEG 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $147.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $183.30. First Solar has a 12 month low of $120.60 and a 12 month high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 380 shares of the company’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 $50,825.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 17,594 shares in the company, valued at $2,353,197.50. This trade represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158 over the last ninety days. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 47.0% during the 4th quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,859 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $856,000 after acquiring an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 665.8% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,192 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $7,308,000 after purchasing an additional 34,074 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 21,446 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $5,350,000 after purchasing an additional 5,780 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,240,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in First Solar by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 595,267 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $104,910,000 after buying an additional 49,074 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.