Redwood Grove Capital LLC Buys Shares of 85,200 First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Redwood Grove Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 85,200 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock, valued at approximately $20,104,000. First Solar makes up about 5.1% of Redwood Grove Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,310,298,000. Hill City Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the second quarter worth $620,133,555,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Solar in the fourth quarter worth $392,040,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in First Solar during the second quarter valued at $212,626,000. Finally, Viking Global Investors LP increased its position in First Solar by 60.6% during the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $375,122,000 after acquiring an additional 854,919 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

First Solar News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting First Solar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Value appeal: Zacks identifies First Solar as a top-ranked value stock, potentially supporting investor interest given its reported earnings strength and relatively low valuation metrics. First Solar Is a Top-Ranked Value Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data offers no actionable signal: The latest report lists short interest at zero shares and a zero-day days-to-cover ratio, unchanged from the prior period. Because the figures include an apparent calculation error (“NaN” increase), they should not be interpreted as evidence of either short covering or heightened bearish positioning.
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang intensifies: Multiple law firms are promoting a securities class action against First Solar and seeking investors to serve as lead plaintiff. The reported claims focus on alleged misrepresentations regarding underutilization of Series 6 module production and the costly challenges of expanding manufacturing operations in South Carolina. The allegations have not been proven, but the repeated announcements may weigh on sentiment by raising potential financial, legal and reputational risks. First Solar Investor Alert Levi and Korsinsky First Solar Lawsuit Alert

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Solar news, EVP Samantha L. Sloan sold 127 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.95, for a total transaction of $28,314.65. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $449,913.10. This trade represents a 5.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Caroline Stockdale sold 10,628 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.60, for a total transaction of $2,929,076.80. Following the sale, the insider owned 23,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,557,075.20. The trade was a 30.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 25,709 shares of company stock worth $6,386,163 over the last ninety days. 0.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on FSLR shares. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $229.00 target price (down from $249.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of First Solar from $294.00 to $297.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $245.00 to $272.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of First Solar from $245.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Solar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $264.44.

First Solar Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of First Solar stock opened at $206.82 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.75. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $226.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $223.78. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $182.99 and a 52 week high of $320.95.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $1.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.02% and a net margin of 32.47%.The firm’s revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.18 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 17.77 earnings per share for the current year.

First Solar Company Profile

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.