Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA Grows Stock Holdings in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA grew its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 280.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,562 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the period. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Viking Global Investors LP lifted its position in First Solar by 60.6% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $375,122,000 after buying an additional 854,919 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in First Solar by 38.6% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,025,835 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $459,917,000 after buying an additional 564,032 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in First Solar by 3.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,721,979 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $3,026,108,000 after acquiring an additional 464,130 shares during the last quarter. Atreides Management LP bought a new position in First Solar during the second quarter valued at approximately $65,134,000. Finally, Clean Energy Transition LLP raised its stake in shares of First Solar by 48.2% during the third quarter. Clean Energy Transition LLP now owns 1,117,228 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $246,382,000 after acquiring an additional 363,274 shares in the last quarter. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $199.42 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $213.73 and its 200 day moving average is $235.62. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $285.99. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market cap of $21.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.03, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.61.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark R. Widmar sold 7,738 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total transaction of $1,516,106.34. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 91,787 shares in the company, valued at $17,983,826.91. The trade was a 7.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 3,426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.93, for a total value of $671,256.18. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,632,880.62. The trade was a 29.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 75,989 shares of company stock valued at $14,921,902. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $279.00 to $228.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wolfe Research cut shares of First Solar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $258.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Freedom Capital cut First Solar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on First Solar from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $247.79.

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.