Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Boosts Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 39.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 3,277 shares during the quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,906,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Electron Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 81,947.0% during the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,729,223,000 after buying an additional 7,660,409 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in First Solar by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,236,383,000 after acquiring an additional 108,984 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in First Solar by 75.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 904,498 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $434,977,000 after purchasing an additional 15,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,330,675 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $331,924,000 after purchasing an additional 90,249 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on FSLR shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Roth Mkm dropped their price target on shares of First Solar from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on First Solar from $315.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.71.

First Solar Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $200.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market cap of $21.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.23, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $202.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.27. First Solar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.88 and a 1 year high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.