AtonRa Partners Purchases 79 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

AtonRa Partners lifted its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,600 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the quarter. First Solar accounts for about 1.2% of AtonRa Partners’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. AtonRa Partners’ holdings in First Solar were worth $620,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in First Solar by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 548,058 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $94,419,000 after acquiring an additional 20,946 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in First Solar by 504.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 399,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $68,852,000 after purchasing an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. Sora Investors LLC grew its position in First Solar by 63.6% in the third quarter. Sora Investors LLC now owns 90,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $14,543,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in First Solar by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,945,549,000 after buying an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bull Oak Capital LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 304,592.2% during the 4th quarter. Bull Oak Capital LLC now owns 155,393 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $26,771,000 after buying an additional 155,342 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ FSLR traded up $2.10 on Monday, reaching $180.83. The stock had a trading volume of 1,305,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,067,255. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 2.92. The company has a market cap of $19.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $163.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.50. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $232.00.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.19 by $0.06. First Solar had a net margin of 25.03% and a return on equity of 13.80%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.07) earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,170 shares in the company, valued at $766,917.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $766,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total transaction of $236,640.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,641 shares in the company, valued at $2,467,524.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,620 shares of company stock valued at $4,269,540. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on FSLR. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $187.00 to $250.00 in a report on Friday, April 19th. Bank of America raised their price target on First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $269.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $258.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.92.

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.