Royal Bank Of Canada Has Lowered Expectations for First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Stock Price

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target lowered by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $236.00 to $232.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 35.30% from the stock’s previous close.

FSLR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $275.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Mizuho set a $324.00 price objective on shares of First Solar in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Truist Financial upgraded First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $229.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Citigroup cut First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of First Solar from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, First Solar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $257.20.

First Solar Stock Down 3.1%

NASDAQ:FSLR traded down $5.41 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $171.48. 1,232,488 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,342,569. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $189.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $216.51. The firm has a market cap of $18.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.80. First Solar has a one year low of $165.86 and a one year high of $320.95.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $5.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.67 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.02% and a net margin of 32.47%. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was down 22.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.24 EPS. Equities analysts predict that First Solar will post 17.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, General Counsel Jason E. Dymbort sold 3,700 shares of First Solar stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $922,706.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 5,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,402,513.12. The trade was a 39.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Markus Gloeckler sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.00, for a total value of $139,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 5,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $877,308. The trade was a 13.69% 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 16,681 shares of company stock valued at $3,756,286 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,310,298,000. Hill City Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter valued at $620,133,555. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 7.0% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,535,836 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $362,396,000 after purchasing an additional 100,694 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of First Solar by 4.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,305,471 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $257,441,000 after purchasing an additional 56,300 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in First Solar in the 2nd quarter worth $212,626,000. 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: First Solar reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $5.30 per share, above the roughly $4.64–$4.67 analyst consensus and up from $4.24 a year earlier. Cost controls and strong margins helped produce the earnings beat. First Solar Tops Q3 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: The company authorized a $500 million share-repurchase program, which could support per-share earnings and signal management’s confidence in the long-term business outlook. First Solar Announces Third Quarter Results and Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: First Solar signed a non-exclusive U.S. patent licensing agreement with CubicPV covering perovskite technology, potentially expanding its future solar-product development options. First Solar and CubicPV Patent Licensing Agreement
• Positive Sentiment: Needham maintained a “buy” rating, although it reduced its price target to $236 from $303, leaving substantial implied upside from recent trading levels.
• Neutral Sentiment: First Solar inaugurated the first phase of its South Carolina facility. The approximately $330 million project is expected to reach 3.4 gigawatts of annual capacity after its second phase is completed in 2027, strengthening domestic manufacturing capacity but requiring significant investment. First Solar South Carolina Facility
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue fell 22.8% year over year to $1.23 billion, missing the $1.29 billion consensus. Management also cut its 2026 outlook as customer decisions were delayed and demand weakened, overshadowing the EPS beat. FSLR Q3 Earnings Call Highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts responded by lowering estimates and price targets. GLJ Research downgraded FSLR to “hold” with a $161 target, while Bernstein cut its target to $169 and retained an “underperform” rating. Higher interest rates also remain a risk for solar-project economics.

First Solar Company Profile

First Solar, Inc is a vertically integrated solar technology and manufacturing company that designs, manufactures and sells photovoltaic (PV) solar modules. Its modules use advanced thin-film semiconductor technology based on cadmium telluride (CdTe), rather than the crystalline-silicon technology used by most solar manufacturers. The company serves utility-scale solar developers, commercial and industrial customers, and other large-scale energy users.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, First Solar operates research and development, manufacturing and recycling facilities in the United States and internationally.