First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target Raised to $271.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target upped by Oppenheimer from $269.00 to $271.00 in a research note released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

FSLR has been the subject of several other research reports. DZ Bank assumed coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They issued a buy rating and a $205.00 price objective for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, April 12th. They set a buy rating and a $236.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Evercore ISI raised shares of First Solar from an in-line rating to an outperform rating and set a $227.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of First Solar from $265.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $238.16.

First Solar Trading Up 6.1 %

NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $11.04 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $191.55. 3,008,268 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,074,836. First Solar has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $232.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.28. The firm has a market cap of $20.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.92.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. The company had revenue of $794.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total transaction of $236,640.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,467,524.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $338,975.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,193,800. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total transaction of $236,640.00. Following the completion of 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,620 shares of company stock worth $4,269,540. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at $298,123,000. Clean Energy Transition LLP lifted its stake in First Solar by 948.8% in the 3rd quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP now owns 1,186,646 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $191,750,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,500 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in First Solar by 125.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 848,623 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $137,130,000 after acquiring an additional 472,327 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its stake in First Solar by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,454,499 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $422,861,000 after acquiring an additional 351,540 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covalis Capital LLP increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 615.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covalis Capital LLP now owns 408,012 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $65,931,000 after purchasing an additional 350,996 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% 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.