Courier Capital LLC Sells 224 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Courier Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,513 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 224 shares during the period. Courier Capital LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,672,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in First Solar by 504.1% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 399,650 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $68,852,000 after acquiring an additional 333,496 shares in the last quarter. Sora Investors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sora Investors LLC now owns 90,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $14,543,000 after buying an additional 35,000 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,945,549,000 after buying an additional 279,424 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 50,354 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $8,137,000 after buying an additional 10,940 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 21.0% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 7,356 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,189,000 after buying an additional 1,277 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Trading Up 9.3 %

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $167.45 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.92, a current ratio of 3.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $129.21 and a 52 week high of $232.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $151.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $155.16.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.19 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 25.03% and a return on equity of 13.80%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.07) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of First Solar from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $215.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $268.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Friday, December 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.48.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,917.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other First Solar news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total value of $37,085.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,917.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 679 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $108,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 14,473 shares in the company, valued at $2,315,680. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 19,883 shares of company stock worth $3,100,837. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.