L & S Advisors Inc Has $1.73 Million Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

L & S Advisors Inc lessened its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 26.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,791 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after selling 3,606 shares during the quarter. L & S Advisors Inc's holdings in First Solar were worth $1,726,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 7,457 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 2,796 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in First Solar by 214.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in First Solar in the third quarter valued at approximately $360,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in First Solar by 1.9% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 80,271 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock worth $20,036,000 after acquiring an additional 1,479 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter worth $240,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,589,129.27. The trade was a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $484,793.40. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $1.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,570,178 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,645,552. The company has a market capitalization of $13.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.60 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $148.95 and a 200-day moving average of $184.01.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group cut their price objective on First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $262.08.

First Solar Company Profile

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.