New York Life Investment Management LLC Reduces Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

New York Life Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,877 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 192 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Baystate Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Estabrook Capital Management bought a new position in First Solar in the third quarter worth $29,000. Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in First Solar during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, USCF Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of First Solar by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Trading Up 6.1 %

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $191.55 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.50 billion, a PE ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.37. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $129.21 and a 1-year high of $232.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $158.28.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $718.19 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $338,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at $2,193,800. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 1,937 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $338,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 12,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,193,800. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Georges Antoun sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.00, for a total value of $422,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 37,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,584,512. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,620 shares of company stock worth $4,269,540. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FSLR shares. DZ Bank assumed coverage on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $205.00 price target for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $236.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on First Solar from $224.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $258.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on First Solar from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $238.16.

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.