Guggenheim Reiterates "Buy" Rating for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating restated by equities research analysts at Guggenheim in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $335.00 price objective on the solar cell manufacturer's stock. Guggenheim's price objective indicates a potential upside of 92.41% from the company's current price.

FSLR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Citigroup raised First Solar from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $254.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $260.00 price target (down previously from $286.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of First Solar from $315.00 to $280.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $277.75.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $2.21 on Wednesday, hitting $174.11. The stock had a trading volume of 4,221,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,082,507. The company has a market capitalization of $18.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.49. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $189.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $208.83. First Solar has a twelve month low of $135.88 and a twelve month high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 earnings per share 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 firm 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 company posted $2.50 earnings per share. First Solar's quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of First Solar by 4.2% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 51,473 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $11,605,000 after purchasing an additional 2,077 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in First Solar by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 5,626 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $1,268,000 after buying an additional 1,172 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its stake in First Solar by 22.7% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 939 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Profund Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 6.9% in the second quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 2,165 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $488,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the second quarter worth $225,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% 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.