Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Price

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target decreased by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $297.00 to $238.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price suggests a potential upside of 51.75% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on FSLR. Mizuho raised shares of First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.92.

First Solar Stock Up 6.4 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $156.84 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 2.14. First Solar has a fifty-two week low of $144.28 and a fifty-two week high of $306.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $199.08.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. Equities analysts expect that First Solar will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $317,399,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in First Solar by 75.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $523,166,000 after buying an additional 904,498 shares in the last quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 17,404.5% during the fourth quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 722,760 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $127,379,000 after buying an additional 718,631 shares during the last quarter. Mirova US LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 961.0% in the 4th quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $113,906,000 after buying an additional 585,394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 1,757.2% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 546,193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $136,242,000 after acquiring an additional 516,783 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.