Intech Investment Management LLC Sells 5,680 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Intech Investment Management LLC cut its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 43.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,285 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 5,680 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,903,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Viking Global Investors LP grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 60.6% during the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $375,122,000 after acquiring an additional 854,919 shares in the last quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 2,663.8% in the fourth quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 666,307 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $174,059,000 after purchasing an additional 642,199 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 38.6% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,025,835 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $459,917,000 after purchasing an additional 564,032 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in First Solar by 3.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,721,979 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,026,108,000 after purchasing an additional 464,130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atreides Management LP bought a new position in First Solar in the second quarter valued at $65,134,000. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $314.95 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $222.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $232.83. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $135.50 and a one year high of $320.95. The stock has a market cap of $33.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 2.15.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.95 EPS. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.61 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Jason E. Dymbort sold 9,022 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.62, for a total transaction of $1,800,971.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 9,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,966,257. The trade was a 47.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 9,926 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.21, for a total value of $2,314,842.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 95,148 shares in the company, valued at $22,189,465.08. The trade was a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 76,480 shares of company stock valued at $16,668,515. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FSLR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $300.00 to $243.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. DZ Bank upgraded First Solar to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Argus lifted their target price on First Solar from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised First Solar from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $247.40.

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.