First Solar Stock Sinks As CEO Offloads Stock Worth $3M, But Retail Stays Extremely Bullish

Shares of First Solar Inc. (FSLR) plunged over 6% in Monday’s regular trading after the company’s CEO offloaded stock worth $3 million.

In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), First Solar disclosed that its CEO, Mark Widmar, sold 21,542 shares of the company on Feb. 28 in a transaction valued at $3.04 million.

After the sale, Widmar’s holdings stood at 103,403 shares.

Earlier in February, First Solar reported earnings per share (EPS) of $3.65, falling short of Wall Street’s expectations of $4.63. For comparison, its EPS during the same period last year stood at $3.25.

The Tempe, Arizona-based company posted revenue of $1.51 billion, beating an estimated $1.48 billion. First Solar’s revenue rose from $1.16 billion to $1.51 billion on a year-on-year basis.

Following the results, several brokerages trimmed their price targets for First Solar, underscored by concerns about demand and project delays.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley noted that the market is awaiting clarity on the outlook for the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Still, according to The Fly, Wells Fargo thinks margin improvements will occur in the second half of 2025 as IRA uncertainty lifts.

Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage of First Solar with a ‘Neutral’ rating and a price target of $150, implying an upside of over 17% from Monday’s close.

Data from FinChat shows the average price target of 40 brokerage recommendations for First Solar is $245.14, implying an upside of over 92% from current levels.

Of these, there are 22 ‘Buy’ and 12 ‘Outperform’ ratings, five recommendations of ‘Hold,’ and one brokerage has ‘No Opinion.’

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the First Solar stock remained in the ‘extremely bullish’ (88/100) territory.

Message volume was also at ‘extremely high’ levels showing significant retail interest.

One user thinks the stock will “provide strong returns” in the long term.

Another user thinks people shorting the stock at these levels deserve to lose money.

First Solar’s stock has been on a downtrend this year, declining over 27% year-to-date. Over the past year, the stock is down more than 18%.

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Also See: SolarEdge Stock Plunges As CFO Steps Down, Retail Sentiment Edges Lower