Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 56.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,867 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 676 shares during the quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $322,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FSLR. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in First Solar by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 7,862 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 149.1% during the 3rd quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 3,430 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $554,000 after acquiring an additional 2,053 shares during the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd boosted its stake in First Solar by 42.9% during the 3rd quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 1,876 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC bought a new position in First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at $500,000. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. boosted its stake in First Solar by 64.2% during the 3rd quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 4,644 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $751,000 after acquiring an additional 1,815 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $108,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $108,640.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,315,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total transaction of $236,640.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,467,524.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 44,191 shares of company stock valued at $7,809,099. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR traded down $0.99 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $250.76. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,071,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,206,038. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $177.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $162.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.39, a PEG ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 1.86. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $253.99.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. The company had revenue of $794.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $227.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $269.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $359.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.16.

First Solar 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.