Achmea Investment Management B.V. Cuts Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. reduced its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 67.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,746 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 7,693 shares during the quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V.'s holdings in First Solar were worth $661,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 2.2% in 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 purchasing an additional 108,984 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in First Solar by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,602,503 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $647,440,000 after acquiring an additional 24,143 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 75.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $523,166,000 after acquiring an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $336,871,000 after acquiring an additional 426,797 shares during the period. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $434,977,000 after purchasing an additional 15,890 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR stock traded up $2.00 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $129.34. The company had a trading volume of 2,049,470 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,554,296. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.96 and a 12-month high of $306.77. The company has a market capitalization of $13.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.14, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $159.91 and a 200-day moving average of $189.73.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.48 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FSLR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $280.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Seaport Res Ptn raised First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $262.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total value of $1,021,085.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

About First Solar

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.