First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Earns “Buy” Rating from Guggenheim

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at Guggenheim in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $335.00 target price on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Guggenheim’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 92.41% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on FSLR. Citigroup upgraded shares of First Solar from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $200.00 to $254.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $290.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $307.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $321.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.75.

First Solar Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $174.11 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $189.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $208.59. First Solar has a 52 week low of $135.88 and a 52 week high of $306.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market cap of $18.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.49.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by ($0.19). First Solar had a net margin of 32.41% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $887.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of First Solar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in First Solar in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar by 214.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the 4th quarter worth $53,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.