Flputnam Investment Management Co. Sells 9,843 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 79.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,485 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 9,843 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Solar by 47.0% during the 4th quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,859 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in First Solar by 665.8% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,192 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $7,308,000 after buying an additional 34,074 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in First Solar by 36.9% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 21,446 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $5,350,000 after acquiring an additional 5,780 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at $1,240,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 595,267 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $104,910,000 after acquiring an additional 49,074 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Down 6.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $127.63 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $171.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $196.97. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $126.54 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market cap of $13.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. As a group, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares in the company, valued at $484,793.40. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at $14,589,129.27. The trade was a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FSLR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on First Solar from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on First Solar in a research note on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price target (down previously from $300.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.08.

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.