First Solar, Inc. Forecasted to Post FY2024 Earnings of $13.37 Per Share (NASDAQ:FSLR)

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) – Research analysts at Roth Capital reduced their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for First Solar in a report released on Wednesday, July 31st. Roth Capital analyst P. Shen now anticipates that the solar cell manufacturer will earn $13.37 per share for the year, down from their previous forecast of $13.57. The consensus estimate for First Solar’s current full-year earnings is $13.56 per share. Roth Capital also issued estimates for First Solar’s Q4 2024 earnings at $4.75 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $5.58 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $7.67 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $23.03 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $29.84 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on FSLR. UBS Group upped their price objective on First Solar from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $274.00 price target (up from $209.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on First Solar from $268.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on First Solar from $311.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on First Solar from $187.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.58.

First Solar Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ FSLR opened at $213.05 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $245.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $194.57. First Solar has a 52-week low of $129.21 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.33, a PEG ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.69 by $0.56. First Solar had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $939.71 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. First Solar’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Solar news, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total value of $4,409,049.19. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at $8,419,797.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other First Solar news, Director Richard D. Chapman sold 3,165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.48, for a total transaction of $602,869.20. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,051.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Alexander R. Bradley sold 16,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.69, for a total value of $4,409,049.19. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 30,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,419,797.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,153 shares of company stock valued at $12,540,428 over the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 445 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 2,213 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter valued at about $354,000. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 32,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $5,513,000 after purchasing an additional 2,700 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 27,894 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $4,806,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

About First Solar

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.