National Pension Service Purchases 9,500 Shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

National Pension Service increased its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 195,383 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,500 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.18% of First Solar worth $34,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FSLR. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in First Solar by 75.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,097,364 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $523,166,000 after acquiring an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in First Solar by 1,757.2% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 546,193 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $136,242,000 after acquiring an additional 516,783 shares during the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP boosted its stake in First Solar by 993.4% during the 3rd quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP now owns 322,936 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $80,553,000 after acquiring an additional 293,400 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in First Solar in the third quarter valued at approximately $67,652,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in First Solar by 110.4% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 375,010 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $66,092,000 after buying an additional 196,744 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of First Solar from $246.00 to $236.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $280.00 price target on shares of First Solar in a research note on Wednesday. Three 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.08.

First Solar Price Performance

Shares of FSLR opened at $136.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. First Solar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.90 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $172.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $198.11. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

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

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.