B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Purchases New Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 16,247 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $4,053,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Electron Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 81,947.0% during the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,729,223,000 after purchasing an additional 7,660,409 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1,757.2% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 546,193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $136,242,000 after buying an additional 516,783 shares during the period. Anomaly Capital Management LP acquired a new position in First Solar in the 2nd quarter valued at $53,752,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in First Solar by 24,844.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 217,512 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $542,560,000 after acquiring an additional 216,640 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in First Solar by 2,429.1% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 174,530 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $39,350,000 after acquiring an additional 167,629 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

First Solar Trading Down 1.3 %

FSLR stock opened at $184.84 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $19.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.48. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $214.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.70. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.88 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FSLR. Citigroup raised First Solar from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $200.00 to $254.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Clarkson Capital began coverage on First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised First Solar to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. DZ Bank raised shares of First Solar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $280.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of First Solar from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $280.50.

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.