First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Bought by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,700 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System's holdings in First Solar were worth $7,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $298,123,000. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,454,499 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $422,861,000 after purchasing an additional 351,540 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 11.1% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 2,801,916 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $472,963,000 after acquiring an additional 279,719 shares during the last quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,359,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $769,896. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other First Solar news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $769,896. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total value of $4,409,049.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 30,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,419,797.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,203 shares of company stock worth $9,598,253 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of First Solar from $325.00 to $326.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $315.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of First Solar from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $344.00 to $307.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Mizuho reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $274.00 target price (up from $209.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $275.36.

First Solar Stock Performance

FSLR stock traded down $6.85 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $228.57. The company had a trading volume of 1,085,802 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,435,152. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $226.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $204.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.44. First Solar, Inc. has a one year low of $129.21 and a one year high of $306.77.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $939.71 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.73% and a net margin of 31.98%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.53 EPS for the current year.

First Solar 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.