BMO Capital Markets Reaffirms “Outperform” Rating for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $230.00 target price on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, down from their prior target price of $260.00.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $329.00 to $297.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (down from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on First Solar from $275.00 to $273.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.08.

First Solar Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $136.18 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $172.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $198.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. First Solar has a 1 year low of $133.90 and a 1 year high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,259,697,000 after buying an additional 120,289 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,236,383,000 after buying an additional 108,984 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $469,154,000 after purchasing an additional 63,739 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of First Solar by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,359,846 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $415,899,000 after acquiring an additional 262,482 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,835,056 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $323,410,000 after buying an additional 223,933 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.