Amundi Increases Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Amundi increased its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 31.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 426,797 shares during the period. Amundi owned about 1.69% of First Solar worth $336,871,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar by 214.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar by 31.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Solar Stock Up 6.1 %

FSLR stock opened at $139.13 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $124.96 and a one year high of $306.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.90 billion, a PE ratio of 11.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. The company has a fifty day moving average of $167.08 and a 200-day moving average of $194.60.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on FSLR. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective (down from $260.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.08.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $484,793.40. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.58% 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.