Retirement Systems of Alabama Lowers Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,547 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 608 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in First Solar were worth $4,057,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FSLR. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 15.4% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 32,365 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $5,230,000 after purchasing an additional 4,327 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 46.7% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 1,686 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 78.4% during the third quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,507 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.7% during the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 90,699 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $14,656,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 6.0% during the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 20,512 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $3,315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total value of $2,592,551.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,539,477.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other First Solar news, insider Georges Antoun sold 16,667 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.55, for a total value of $2,592,551.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 42,041 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,539,477.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.34, for a total transaction of $37,085.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,170 shares in the company, valued at $766,917.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 26,620 shares of company stock worth $4,269,540 in the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Solar Stock Up 1.2 %

FSLR opened at $193.81 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.86 and a current ratio of 2.41. First Solar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.21 and a fifty-two week high of $232.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $167.56 and its 200 day moving average is $158.61. The stock has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.37.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $794.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $718.19 million. First Solar had a net margin of 28.75% and a return on equity of 16.24%. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 44.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FSLR shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $224.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $265.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. DZ Bank started 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. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $245.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $238.16.

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.