Joule Financial LLC Cuts Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Joule Financial LLC decreased its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,281 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. Joule Financial LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Western Financial Corp CA bought a new stake in First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,209,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of First Solar by 36.9% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 21,446 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $5,350,000 after acquiring an additional 5,780 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in First Solar by 802.1% in the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,460 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $5,104,000 after acquiring an additional 18,192 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 224.0% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,217 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after acquiring an additional 3,607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Solar by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 244,140 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $60,898,000 after purchasing an additional 14,597 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 price objective (down previously from $286.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on First Solar from $368.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on First Solar from $271.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.75.

First Solar Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $192.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $20.65 billion, a PE ratio of 16.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.49. First Solar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.88 and a 1 year high of $306.77. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $190.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $209.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.09 earnings per share for the current year.

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.