First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) EVP Paul J. Kaleta sold 23,696 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.69, for a total transaction of $1,177,454.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,510 shares in the company, valued at $721,001.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.
First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) traded down 2.05% during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $48.63. 2,785,109 shares of the company were exchanged. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.35 and a 200-day moving average of $34.90. The stock’s market capitalization is $5.08 billion. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $25.56 and a one year high of $50.21.
First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.60. First Solar had a negative net margin of 18.80% and a positive return on equity of 6.43%. The company had revenue of $623 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $591.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 38.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post $0.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Several analysts recently issued reports on FSLR shares. UBS AG upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 2nd. Barclays PLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday. Vetr upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $48.61 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. BidaskClub upgraded shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 24th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of First Solar from a “d+” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. First Solar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.83.
Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in First Solar by 57.6% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 2,600 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Amica Retiree Medical Trust boosted its stake in First Solar by 814.5% in the first quarter. Amica Retiree Medical Trust now owns 4,097 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 3,649 shares during the last quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 36.7% in the first quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,275 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 1,417 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its stake in First Solar by 27.8% in the first quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 5,477 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $149,000 after buying an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, James Investment Research Inc. bought a new stake in First Solar during the first quarter valued at about $163,000. Institutional investors own 60.70% of the company’s stock.
About First Solar
First Solar, Inc is a provider of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy solutions. The Company designs, manufactures and sells PV solar modules with a thin-film semiconductor technology. The Company also develops, designs, constructs and sells PV solar power systems that primarily use the modules it manufactures.
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