Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Grows Stake in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,768 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 793 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $4,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new position in First Solar in the third quarter worth $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 214.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in First Solar in the fourth quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. 92.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In related news, insider Kuntal Kumar Verma sold 419 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.96, for a total transaction of $55,710.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $624,247.20. This represents a 8.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $3,039,360.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,589,129.27. This represents a 17.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,739 shares of company stock valued at $4,289,403. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

First Solar Stock Down 2.2 %

FSLR opened at $136.04 on Thursday. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $124.96 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $164.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.76. The company has a market cap of $14.56 billion, a PE ratio of 11.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.52.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho raised shares of First Solar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $218.00 to $259.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of First Solar from $360.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $265.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.08.

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.