Bridgewater Associates LP Acquires 88,352 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 5,397.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 89,989 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after buying an additional 88,352 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP owned 0.08% of First Solar worth $22,447,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of First Solar by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 17,887 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $3,019,000 after buying an additional 1,161 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 167,897 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $28,341,000 after purchasing an additional 2,842 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 175.6% during the 1st quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,685 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $960,000 after purchasing an additional 3,622 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 2,103 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 1st quarter valued at $21,815,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on FSLR. Roth Mkm reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $321.00 to $269.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $245.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Clarkson Capital began coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of First Solar from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $200.00 to $254.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $279.04.

First Solar Trading Up 0.1 %

FSLR stock traded up $0.25 during trading on Thursday, reaching $192.57. The company had a trading volume of 1,713,670 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,524,869. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.88 and a 52 week high of $306.77. The company has a market cap of $20.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.59, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.48. The business has a 50 day moving average of $209.90 and a 200 day moving average of $225.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. First Solar's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.