Susquehanna Cuts First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target to $250.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target lowered by Susquehanna from $280.00 to $250.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a positive rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock.

FSLR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $300.00 to $245.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $291.00 to $271.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $326.00 to $271.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Zacks Research lowered shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $312.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $246.13.

First Solar Price Performance

First Solar stock opened at $203.47 on Thursday. First Solar has a 52-week low of $119.09 and a 52-week high of $285.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $208.16 and a 200-day moving average of $234.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.32, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $4.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.22 by ($0.38). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 29.28%.The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.65 EPS. First Solar’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that First Solar will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other First Solar news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 14,106 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.97, for a total transaction of $2,820,776.82. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,000 shares in the company, valued at $5,999,100. This represents a 31.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 3,640 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.95, for a total transaction of $716,898.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 8,037 shares in the company, valued at $1,582,887.15. This trade represents a 31.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 75,989 shares of company stock worth $14,921,902 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FSLR. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of First Solar by 117.0% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 102 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.