Stephens Inc. AR Grows Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 11.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,541 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 1,880 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,677 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $971,000 after buying an additional 1,543 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 226.5% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,264 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after buying an additional 14,751 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in First Solar by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 12,529 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,584,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund purchased a new position in First Solar during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $392,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in First Solar by 396.5% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 11,777 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,489,000 after acquiring an additional 9,405 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Down 1.5%

First Solar stock opened at $223.36 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $213.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.95. The firm has a market cap of $23.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $248.04.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 15.57% and a net margin of 28.95%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.25 earnings per share. First Solar has set its FY 2025 guidance at 13.500-16.500 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Nathan B. Theurer sold 686 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.03, for a total transaction of $124,872.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 23,912 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.47, for a total value of $4,434,958.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,978 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,317,279.66. The trade was a 21.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,715 shares of company stock worth $5,733,305. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on FSLR. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on First Solar from $194.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Guggenheim lifted their price target on First Solar from $202.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on First Solar from $212.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on First Solar from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $244.00.

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.