Trust Investment Advisors Sells 117 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Trust Investment Advisors lowered its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,763 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 117 shares during the quarter. Trust Investment Advisors’ holdings in First Solar were worth $663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 75.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $523,166,000 after acquiring an additional 904,498 shares in the last quarter. Mirova US LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 961.0% in the 4th quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $113,906,000 after purchasing an additional 585,394 shares during the period. Amundi increased its position in shares of First Solar by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $336,871,000 after purchasing an additional 426,797 shares during the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 993.4% during the 3rd quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 322,936 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $80,553,000 after purchasing an additional 293,400 shares during the period. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in First Solar during the third quarter valued at about $67,652,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on FSLR shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 target price (down from $260.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on First Solar from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Solar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.08.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $131.46 on Wednesday. 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 $124.96 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $154.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $186.71. The firm has a market cap of $14.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52.

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

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,272 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total value of $169,125.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 109,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,492,640. This represents a 1.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the business’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 $80,116.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,114,648.75. This trade represents a 1.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.