Lido Advisors LLC Increases Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Lido Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 58.9% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 18,517 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 6,864 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in First Solar by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 9,044 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 50.9% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 516 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 84.3% during the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,529 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,072 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the second quarter worth about $494,000. Finally, AXA S.A. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar by 6.3% in the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 18,862 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $3,122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 4,815 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.43, for a total transaction of $1,191,375.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 89,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,029,435.19. This represents a 5.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 10,628 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.60, for a total value of $2,929,076.80. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,792 shares in the company, valued at $6,557,075.20. This represents a 30.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,893 shares of company stock worth $7,893,775. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Down 1.5%

NASDAQ FSLR opened at $202.82 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $171.99 and a 52 week high of $320.95. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $248.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $226.92. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The firm has a market cap of $21.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.73.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.35. First Solar had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 18.01%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.95 earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue was up 23.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on FSLR shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of First Solar from $211.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on First Solar from $252.00 to $237.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.10.

First Solar News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Roth Capital reaffirmed its buy rating on First Solar and set a $300 price target, implying meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary highlighted record U.S. solar power output and rising electricity demand from AI data centers, which supports the broader solar demand narrative and could benefit First Solar over time. 24/7 Wall St.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms, including Rosen, Howard G. Smith, Schall, Kaplan Fox, Faruqi & Faruqi, and others, reminded investors about pending First Solar securities-fraud class actions and the August 24 lead-plaintiff deadline. PR Newswire
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reporting showed no meaningful update, with the latest filing indicating zero shares reported short and a days-to-cover ratio of 0.0, so it does not appear to be a current market driver.
• Negative Sentiment: The ongoing securities-fraud litigation headlines create a legal overhang that may pressure the shares until there is more clarity on the case outcome.

About First Solar

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.