Huntington National Bank Boosts Holdings in First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)

Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) by 95.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 443 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the quarter. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in First Solar were worth $111,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Solar during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in First Solar during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Solar by 411.1% in the 2nd quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 138 shares of the solar cell manufacturer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Solar in the second quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of First Solar during the second quarter valued at $38,000. 92.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Solar Price Performance

NASDAQ:FSLR opened at $190.45 on Monday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $216.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $225.91. First Solar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.88 and a 52 week high of $306.77. The stock has a market cap of $20.39 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $887.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that First Solar, Inc. will post 13.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. William Blair assumed coverage on First Solar in a report on Thursday, August 29th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of First Solar in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of First Solar from $315.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of First Solar from $325.00 to $326.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded First Solar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Solar has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $280.50.

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.