First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Upgraded to Buy at Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $254.00 price target on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, up from their previous price target of $200.00.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on FSLR. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $343.00 to $321.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of First Solar from $215.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $288.46.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR opened at $201.40 on Tuesday. First Solar has a 12 month low of $129.21 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The company’s fifty day moving average is $226.51 and its 200-day moving average is $223.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market cap of $21.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.44.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $939.71 million. First Solar had a net margin of 31.98% and a return on equity of 17.73%. The business’s revenue was up 24.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 EPS. Equities analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total transaction of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $769,896. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other First Solar news, insider Patrick James Buehler sold 8,619 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.00, for a total value of $1,913,418.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,896. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Byron Michael Jeffers sold 500 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $110,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,885 shares of company stock valued at $2,405,757 in the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 24,844.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 217,512 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $542,560,000 after purchasing an additional 216,640 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 4.9% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,877 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $967,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in First Solar during the third quarter worth $1,043,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 7.3% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,195 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $797,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 5.6% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,585 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Company 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.