First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Upgraded by Janney Montgomery Scott to “Buy”

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) was upgraded by analysts at Janney Montgomery Scott from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports. The firm presently has a $260.00 price objective on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Janney Montgomery Scott’s target price indicates a potential upside of 26.81% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $271.00 to $266.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on First Solar from $325.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup upgraded First Solar from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $200.00 to $254.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $289.46.

First Solar Price Performance

FSLR opened at $205.03 on Tuesday. First Solar has a 1 year low of $129.21 and a 1 year high of $306.77. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $223.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $223.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.95 billion, a PE ratio of 21.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.23.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.56. First Solar had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 17.73%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $939.71 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 1,766 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.50, for a total value of $382,339.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $108,250. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 10,885 shares of company stock valued at $2,405,757. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 33.3% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 1,739 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth about $437,000. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 2,213 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $552,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 12.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 2,560 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 10.9% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 104,400 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $26,042,000 after acquiring an additional 10,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.