Roth Mkm Cuts First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target to $280.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its target price trimmed by Roth Mkm from $320.00 to $280.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on First Solar from $271.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Hsbc Global Res raised First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. DZ Bank upgraded First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of First Solar from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $343.00 to $321.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.64.

First Solar Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $203.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.77 billion, a PE ratio of 21.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $227.19 and its 200 day moving average is $222.24. First Solar has a twelve month low of $129.21 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $939.71 million. First Solar had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 17.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. Research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $110,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $769,896. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $110,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,885 shares of company stock worth $2,405,757 over the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,257,053 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,068,991,000 after buying an additional 105,236 shares during the last quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 81,947.0% during the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,729,223,000 after acquiring an additional 7,660,409 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its stake in First Solar by 11.1% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $472,963,000 after acquiring an additional 279,719 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in First Solar by 8.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 795,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $179,478,000 after purchasing an additional 64,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 652,354 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $147,080,000 after purchasing an additional 2,378 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.