WINTON GROUP Ltd Acquires 38,328 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 342.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 49,533 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 38,328 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd’s holdings in First Solar were worth $10,924,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in First Solar in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. NBT Bank N A NY increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 550.0% during the 3rd quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 221 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on First Solar from $285.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on First Solar from $275.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on First Solar from $316.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Bank of America cut their price target on First Solar from $291.00 to $271.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered First Solar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $249.65.

First Solar Stock Down 1.4%

FSLR stock opened at $189.21 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $234.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.42. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $285.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.32, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $4.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.22 by ($0.38). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 29.28%.The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 7,738 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total value of $1,516,106.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 91,787 shares in the company, valued at $17,983,826.91. This represents a 7.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 1,958 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.95, for a total transaction of $381,712.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 17,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,451,589.75. The trade was a 9.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 31,975 shares of company stock worth $6,267,492 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Profile

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.