Cerity Partners LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Cerity Partners LLC reduced its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,385 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 398 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $411,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Clean Energy Transition LLP raised its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in First Solar by 125.5% in 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 last quarter. Covalis Capital LLP raised its holdings in First Solar by 615.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covalis Capital LLP now owns 408,012 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $65,931,000 after acquiring an additional 350,996 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in First Solar by 504.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 399,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $68,852,000 after acquiring an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Solar by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,945,549,000 after acquiring an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Solar Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $175.02 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $18.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.61, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.41. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.21 and a 52 week high of $232.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.92, a current ratio of 3.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $162.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.96.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.19 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 25.03% and a return on equity of 13.80%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.07) EPS. Analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the company’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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the company’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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total transaction of $2,592,551.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at $6,539,477.55. 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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FSLR. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $258.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $269.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $236.00 target price for the company. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.36.

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.