UBS Group Lowers First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) Price Target to $285.00

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at UBS Group from $360.00 to $285.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the solar cell manufacturer’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 76.35% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of First Solar from $280.00 to $251.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of First Solar from $311.00 to $279.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of First Solar from $282.00 to $268.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of First Solar from $275.00 to $273.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 target price (down previously from $260.00) on shares of First Solar in a research report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.00.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR traded up $14.15 on Wednesday, reaching $161.61. The stock had a trading volume of 5,353,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,424,746. First Solar has a 1-year low of $144.28 and a 1-year high of $306.77. The company has a market capitalization of $17.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 1.47. 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 fifty day moving average price of $174.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $199.38.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The solar cell manufacturer reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($1.16). The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. First Solar had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 32.41%. Research analysts forecast that First Solar will post 13.05 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Solar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in First Solar by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,821,701 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $2,259,697,000 after buying an additional 120,289 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 2.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,956,633 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,236,383,000 after purchasing an additional 108,984 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in First Solar by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,666,242 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock valued at $469,154,000 after acquiring an additional 63,739 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of First Solar by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,359,846 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $415,899,000 after purchasing an additional 262,482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of First Solar by 13.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,835,056 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $323,410,000 after purchasing an additional 223,933 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.08% of the company’s stock.

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.