Janus Henderson Group PLC Sells 355 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Janus Henderson Group PLC reduced its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,587 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after selling 355 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $2,748,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at $317,399,000. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in First Solar by 17,404.5% in the fourth quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 722,760 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $127,379,000 after buying an additional 718,631 shares during the period. Mirova US LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 961.0% during the 4th quarter. Mirova US LLC now owns 646,310 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $113,906,000 after buying an additional 585,394 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,805,244 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $336,871,000 after buying an additional 426,797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of First Solar by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,248,552 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $220,045,000 after buying an additional 293,134 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Solar Price Performance

First Solar stock opened at $167.22 on Wednesday. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $136.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.67. First Solar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.56 and a 12 month high of $306.77. The company has a market cap of $17.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.40, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.46.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.50 by ($0.55). The firm had revenue of $844.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $863.11 million. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 599 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $6,114,648.75. This trade represents a 1.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 1,966 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.75, for a total value of $262,952.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 111,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,965,287.50. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,311 shares of company stock worth $4,767,158 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FSLR. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of First Solar from $204.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. KeyCorp downgraded First Solar from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on First Solar from $223.00 to $217.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on First Solar from $275.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on First Solar from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.30.

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.