Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Has $3.70 Million Position in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lifted its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 27.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,000 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after buying an additional 4,500 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in First Solar were worth $3,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FSLR. State Street Corp raised its holdings in First Solar by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,236,383,000 after acquiring an additional 108,984 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 0.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,602,503 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $647,440,000 after purchasing an additional 24,143 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its stake in First Solar by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $434,977,000 after purchasing an additional 15,890 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in First Solar by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,330,675 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $331,924,000 after buying an additional 90,249 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FSLR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $329.00 to $297.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Susquehanna cut their price target on First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on First Solar from $240.00 to $209.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $276.38.

First Solar Trading Down 3.6 %

Shares of FSLR stock opened at $147.46 on Wednesday. First Solar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $141.76 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $174.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $199.38. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $15.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.81 by ($1.16). First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.