Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,123 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 683 shares during the period. First Solar comprises 1.8% of Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in First Solar were worth $4,780,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new position in First Solar during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in First Solar during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in First Solar by 214.0% in the third 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, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the second quarter worth about $38,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of First Solar from $329.00 to $297.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Mizuho cut their price target on First Solar from $274.00 to $257.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.75.

First Solar Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $1.30 on Thursday, reaching $188.12. The company had a trading volume of 225,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,487,968. The company has a current ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.14 billion, a PE ratio of 16.20, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.49. First Solar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $135.88 and a 52-week high of $306.77. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $190.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $210.17.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last announced its 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 return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. The firm had revenue of $887.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Solar 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.