DZ Bank Initiates Coverage on First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

DZ Bank started coverage on shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $205.00 price target on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. DZ Bank’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 14.83% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $236.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on First Solar from $268.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $258.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $227.04.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $5.45 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $178.53. The stock had a trading volume of 2,645,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,073,319. First Solar has a twelve month low of $129.21 and a twelve month high of $232.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 3.55.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.19 by $0.06. First Solar had a return on equity of 13.80% and a net margin of 25.03%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.07) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other news, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the firm’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 sale, the director now owns 15,641 shares in the company, valued at $2,467,524.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 approximately $2,315,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director R Craig Kennedy sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.76, for a total transaction of $236,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,467,524.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 26,620 shares of company stock worth $4,269,540. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $298,123,000. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its position in First Solar by 1,371.4% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,818,288 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $313,255,000 after purchasing an additional 1,694,711 shares during the last quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP lifted its position in First Solar by 948.8% in the 3rd quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP now owns 1,186,646 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $191,750,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,500 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Solar by 197.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,336,038 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $111,880,000 after purchasing an additional 887,443 shares during the period. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC bought a new position in First Solar in the 1st quarter worth about $121,554,000. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.