Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 159,845 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 340.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 206,743 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 159,845 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $36,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in First Solar by 14.5% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 356 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 0.6% during the third quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 7,698 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of First Solar by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Field & Main Bank raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 1,385 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on FSLR shares. Roth Mkm lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded First Solar to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on First Solar from $368.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.75.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $190.89 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.44, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $190.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.88 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The company had revenue of $887.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.09 earnings per share for the current year.

First Solar 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.