J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Cuts Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 17.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 88,410 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 18,465 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG owned about 0.08% of First Solar worth $17,424,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 9,044 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 50.9% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 516 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 84.3% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,529 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,072 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $494,000. Finally, AXA S.A. grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 18,862 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,122,000 after buying an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 582 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $145,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,967 shares in the company, valued at $1,241,750. This represents a 10.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 10,628 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.60, for a total transaction of $2,929,076.80. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,557,075.20. This trade represents a 30.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 32,466 shares of company stock worth $8,014,105 over the last ninety days. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price objective on First Solar from $228.00 to $213.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Solar from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on First Solar from $300.00 to $310.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $245.00 to $272.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.31.

First Solar News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its price target on First Solar to $270 from $250 and maintained a positive rating, signaling continued analyst confidence in the stock’s upside potential. Benzinga report on Susquehanna price target increase
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks highlighted First Solar as a strong value stock, which may support the longer-term investment case but is unlikely to move the shares on its own. Zacks value stock article
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms issued class-action reminders and lead-plaintiff deadline alerts tied to First Solar, reinforcing legal uncertainty and potential investor concern around the company. Newsfile class action alert
• Negative Sentiment: Recent coverage also tied the stock’s weakness to the earlier steep selloff and reduced 2026 guidance, which continues to hang over sentiment. PR Newswire class action alert

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $227.83 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $250.91 and its 200 day moving average is $230.60. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $159.85 and a fifty-two week high of $320.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.48 billion, a PE ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.56.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. First Solar’s quarterly revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.95 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current year.

First Solar Profile

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.