First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) Shares Purchased by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR - Free Report) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 362,503 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock after buying an additional 17,938 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.34% of First Solar worth $63,888,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in First Solar by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $1,236,383,000 after buying an additional 108,984 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in First Solar by 0.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,602,503 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $647,440,000 after buying an additional 24,143 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in First Solar by 75.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $523,166,000 after buying an additional 904,498 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in First Solar by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $336,871,000 after buying an additional 426,797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in First Solar by 0.9% in the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer's stock valued at $434,977,000 after buying an additional 15,890 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $624,247.20. This trade represents a 8.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. The trade was a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,739 shares of company stock worth $4,289,403. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR traded down $3.06 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $136.04. The stock had a trading volume of 2,133,550 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,750,801. 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 has a market capitalization of $14.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $124.96 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $192.76.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during 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 fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on First Solar from $273.00 to $236.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on First Solar from $335.00 to $304.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $262.08.

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.