Xponance Inc. Sells 958 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Xponance Inc. cut its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,032 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 958 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,027,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Robeco Schweiz AG boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 28.7% during the 1st quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 604,011 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $76,365,000 after buying an additional 134,616 shares in the last quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 18,850 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,383,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $272,000. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 37,847 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $4,785,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,243 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $160.84 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $262.72. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $160.16 and its 200 day moving average is $153.86. The company has a market cap of $17.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.68, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 29.72%. The firm had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $863.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.20 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on FSLR. Barclays cut their price target on First Solar from $236.00 to $204.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Glj Research upgraded First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $172.37 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Susquehanna lowered their target price on First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on First Solar from $253.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $228.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 8,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,246,136.85. The trade was a 54.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,798,689.49. The trade was a 20.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,976 shares of company stock valued at $2,515,172 over the last three months. 0.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.