HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 4,264 Shares of First Solar, Inc. $FSLR

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 77,154 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,264 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in First Solar were worth $17,015,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in FSLR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in First Solar during the second quarter worth $212,621,000. Viking Global Investors LP grew its position in shares of First Solar by 60.6% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,266,050 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $375,122,000 after acquiring an additional 854,919 shares during the period. Atreides Management LP bought a new position in shares of First Solar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $65,134,000. Ariel Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth about $50,869,000. Finally, Peconic Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Solar during the 2nd quarter worth about $49,662,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FSLR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of First Solar in a research note on Monday, January 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut First Solar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $269.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Glj Research lifted their target price on First Solar from $214.06 to $314.43 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $316.00 target price on shares of First Solar in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on First Solar from $150.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.61.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $233.30 on Friday. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $116.56 and a 52 week high of $285.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.91. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $246.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $234.41. The firm has a market cap of $25.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.60.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR) is a United States–based solar technology company best known for designing and manufacturing thin‑film photovoltaic (PV) modules that use cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor technology. The company supplies PV modules and delivers integrated solar power solutions for utility‑scale projects, positioning itself as a provider of both components and complete solar energy systems rather than solely a parts supplier. First Solar was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Beyond module manufacturing, First Solar offers a range of project services including development support, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services, and operations and maintenance (O&M) for large-scale solar installations.