First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Insider Sells $145,500.00 in Stock

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $145,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,967 shares in the company, valued at $1,241,750. The trade was a 10.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Kuntal Kumar Verma also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, May 5th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 479 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.63, for a total transaction of $103,286.77.
• On Wednesday, April 15th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 573 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total transaction of $120,330.00.
• On Tuesday, March 17th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 180 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.53, for a total transaction of $35,915.40.
• On Monday, March 16th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 392 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.80, for a total value of $78,713.60.
• On Tuesday, March 10th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 408 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.70, for a total value of $79,845.60.
• On Monday, March 9th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 1,386 shares of First Solar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.36, for a total value of $263,838.96.
• On Wednesday, March 4th, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 728 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.95, for a total value of $143,379.60.
• On Tuesday, March 3rd, Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 3,426 shares of First Solar stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total value of $671,256.18.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $8.97 during trading on Friday, reaching $257.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,456,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,396,192. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.50 and a 12 month high of $285.99. The firm has a market cap of $27.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $203.89 and a 200-day moving average of $231.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.56.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 30.73%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.95 EPS. Research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Solar

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in First Solar in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar by 117.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on First Solar from $300.00 to $243.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. DZ Bank raised First Solar to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on First Solar from $269.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.40.

First Solar Company Profile

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.