Saudi Central Bank Increases Position in First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

Saudi Central Bank lifted its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 89.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,145 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,382 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in First Solar were worth $1,686,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FSLR. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC bought a new position in First Solar during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in First Solar by 117.0% during the fourth 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. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in First Solar in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in First Solar in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FSLR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of First Solar in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Evercore reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $218.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.27.

Insider Activity at First Solar

In other news, insider Michael Koralewski sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.51, for a total value of $1,550,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,692,779.42. This represents a 47.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Samantha L. Sloan sold 127 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.95, for a total value 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 approximately $449,913.10. This trade represents a 5.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 15,881 shares of company stock valued at $3,617,086 over the last ninety days. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Solar Stock Performance

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $213.25 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.91 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.74. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $182.99 and a 52-week high of $320.95. The business’s fifty day moving average is $217.75 and its 200 day moving average is $222.29.

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

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.