Sterling Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 55.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,320 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 2,254 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,114,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Clean Energy Transition LLP boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 36.2% in the fourth quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP now owns 935,147 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $164,810,000 after acquiring an additional 248,447 shares during the period. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 1,170.0% in the 4th quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in First Solar by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 993 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of First Solar by 321.0% during the fourth quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 18,635 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $3,284,000 after buying an additional 14,209 shares during the period. Finally, Evexia Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 3,481 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $586,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FSLR. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price (down from $285.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Guggenheim lowered their price target on First Solar from $304.00 to $253.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $251.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total transaction of $80,116.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,717 shares in the company, valued at $6,114,648.75. This represents a 1.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Solar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $126.82 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.56 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $138.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $174.42. The firm has a market cap of $13.58 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. Equities research analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

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.