First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Short Interest Update

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,770,000 shares, a growth of 10.2% from the August 31st total of 4,330,000 shares. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,230,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days.

First Solar Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR traded down $8.78 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $240.66. The stock had a trading volume of 3,036,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,379,242. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $226.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $217.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 1.65. The firm has a market cap of $25.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.44. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $939.71 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that First Solar will post 13.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $110,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,885 shares of company stock valued at $2,405,757. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the first quarter valued at about $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. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of First Solar by 411.1% in the second quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on First Solar from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on First Solar from $311.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on First Solar from $248.00 to $331.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on First Solar from $219.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $284.12.

First Solar Company 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.