Kuntal Kumar Verma Sells 392 Shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.80, for a total transaction of $78,713.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,616 shares in the company, valued at $1,930,892.80. This trade represents a 3.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

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

• 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 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 transaction 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 transaction 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 shares were sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total value of $671,256.18.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock traded up $0.94 on Tuesday, hitting $200.42. The company had a trading volume of 1,358,366 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,623,352. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $285.99. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $21.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $224.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $236.51.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $4.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.22 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 29.28%.The firm’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Woodline Partners LP raised its position in First Solar by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 9,044 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in First Solar by 33.4% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 903 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 33.8% in the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 973 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its position in shares of First Solar by 36.6% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 58,607 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $9,702,000 after purchasing an additional 15,708 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 40.1% during the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 20,441 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,384,000 after purchasing an additional 5,850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FSLR. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $300.00 to $245.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $312.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.17.

About First Solar

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.