PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Decreases Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. reduced its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,715 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 216 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,018,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $298,123,000. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in shares of First Solar by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,454,499 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $422,861,000 after purchasing an additional 351,540 shares during the last quarter. Covalis Capital LLP raised its position in First Solar by 615.6% during the 3rd quarter. Covalis Capital LLP now owns 408,012 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $65,931,000 after buying an additional 350,996 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position 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 buying an additional 333,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in First Solar by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,040,031 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,945,549,000 after buying an additional 279,424 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on FSLR shares. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $227.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $359.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $265.72.

Insider Transactions at First Solar

In other news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total transaction of $4,409,049.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,419,797.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Georges Antoun sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.72, for a total value of $407,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 39,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,756,892.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total transaction of $4,409,049.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at $8,419,797.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 56,269 shares of company stock worth $13,287,671 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $260.07 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a current ratio of 2.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $223.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.26, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.48.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.30. First Solar had a return on equity of 16.24% and a net margin of 28.75%. The business had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 44.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.