Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC Buys 684 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 8.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,853 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 684 shares during the quarter. Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in First Solar in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in First Solar by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. bought a new position in First Solar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,000. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth $53,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth $54,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 9,557 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.05, for a total transaction of $1,481,812.85. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 8,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,246,136.85. The trade was a 54.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Koralewski sold 2,951 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $466,877.71. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,798,689.49. The trade was a 20.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,376 shares of company stock worth $2,227,172 over the last 90 days. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Solar Price Performance

First Solar stock opened at $145.00 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $150.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Solar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $268.12.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 29.72% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $863.11 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on FSLR shares. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $251.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of First Solar from $191.00 to $177.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. KeyCorp downgraded shares of First Solar from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $229.19.

First Solar 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.