iA Global Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 175.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,685 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 3,622 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $960,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in First Solar during the first quarter worth $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Managment Co. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 12,406 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $2,543,230.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,515,125. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other First Solar news, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 12,406 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $2,543,230.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,515,125. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 4,646 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.92, for a total transaction of $1,267,986.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,766 shares in the company, valued at $2,119,496.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 51,153 shares of company stock worth $12,540,428 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of First Solar stock traded up $2.51 during trading on Thursday, reaching $218.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,355,203 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,543,063. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $246.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $194.04. The firm has a market cap of $23.39 billion, a PE ratio of 22.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.44. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. First Solar had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $939.71 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. First Solar’s quarterly revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.58 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of First Solar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $187.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Friday, April 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of First Solar from $268.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of First Solar from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of First Solar from $325.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $273.00.

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.