Sora Investors LLC Takes Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Sora Investors LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 132,191 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $23,297,000. First Solar accounts for approximately 2.6% of Sora Investors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on FSLR. Wolfe Research raised First Solar from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $221.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley set a $223.00 target price on First Solar and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup lowered their target price on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. KeyCorp cut First Solar from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut First Solar from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.48.

First Solar Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $186.18 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $116.56 and a one year high of $306.77. 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’s 50-day moving average is $134.18 and its 200 day moving average is $163.52. The firm has a market cap of $19.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total value of $1,021,085.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

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.