Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. Raises Stock Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 321.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,635 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 14,209 shares during the quarter. First Solar accounts for about 2.4% of Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,284,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake 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 valued at $856,000 after buying an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in First Solar by 665.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,192 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $7,308,000 after purchasing an additional 34,074 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 5,780 shares during the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,240,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 49,074 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on First Solar from $254.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Four 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Solar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.42.

First Solar Trading Up 7.7 %

FSLR stock opened at $129.63 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.56 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The business has a fifty day moving average of $141.53 and a 200-day moving average of $177.84. The company has a market cap of $13.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 7,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.60, for a total transaction of $1,021,085.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $484,793.40. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $169,125.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 109,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,492,640. This represents a 1.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,311 shares of company stock valued at $4,767,158 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.