Wells Fargo & Company Lowers First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target to $209.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its target price reduced by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $240.00 to $209.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 8.80% from the stock’s previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Susquehanna decreased their target price on First Solar from $280.00 to $252.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of First Solar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Solar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of First Solar from $281.00 to $278.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.75.

First Solar Stock Down 2.8 %

NASDAQ:FSLR traded down $5.63 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $192.10. The stock had a trading volume of 382,172 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,526,629. 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 has a twelve month low of $135.88 and a twelve month high of $306.77. The company has a market capitalization of $20.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $192.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $212.45.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Solar will post 13.15 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in First Solar by 81,947.0% in the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,669,757 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $1,729,223,000 after purchasing an additional 7,660,409 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $1,236,383,000 after buying an additional 108,984 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Solar by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,602,503 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $647,440,000 after buying an additional 24,143 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of 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 valued at $523,166,000 after buying an additional 904,498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in First Solar by 0.9% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,743,813 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $434,977,000 after acquiring an additional 15,890 shares during the period. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.