William Blair Has Weak Forecast for First Solar Q2 Earnings

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) – William Blair reduced their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for First Solar in a report released on Wednesday, April 30th. William Blair analyst J. Dorsheimer now anticipates that the solar cell manufacturer will post earnings of $3.20 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $4.32. The consensus estimate for First Solar’s current full-year earnings is $13.05 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for First Solar’s Q4 2025 earnings at $6.18 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $15.03 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $3.04 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $3.76 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $21.54 EPS.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $844.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

FSLR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on First Solar from $253.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho upgraded shares of First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $245.00) on shares of First Solar in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.87.

First Solar Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $130.54 on Friday. First Solar has a 12-month low of $116.56 and a 12-month high of $306.77. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $131.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $166.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.00 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other First Solar news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 21,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $3,039,360.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $80,116.25. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,717 shares in the company, valued at $6,114,648.75. This trade represents a 1.29 % 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 worth $4,767,158 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FSLR. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of First Solar by 47.0% in the fourth quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,859 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 665.8% in the 4th 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. Paragon Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,240,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 9.0% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in shares of First Solar by 41,342.9% in the fourth quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 2,901 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $511,000 after acquiring an additional 2,894 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.