GM Advisory Group LLC Makes New Investment in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

GM Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 10,462 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $1,844,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in First Solar by 75.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $523,166,000 after buying an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. Mirova US LLC grew its stake in First Solar by 961.0% during the 4th quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $113,906,000 after purchasing an additional 585,394 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in First Solar by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $336,871,000 after purchasing an additional 426,797 shares during the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP grew its stake in First Solar by 993.4% during the 3rd quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 322,936 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $80,553,000 after purchasing an additional 293,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $67,652,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price objective on First Solar in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays decreased their price objective on First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $262.08.

Remove Ads

First Solar Stock Performance

FSLR stock traded up $2.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $131.32. The company had a trading volume of 4,507,994 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,568,942. The firm has a market cap of $14.06 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.96 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $156.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $188.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last released 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 return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. On average, analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $484,793.40. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. This trade represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. Company 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.