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Why the Market Dipped But First Solar (FSLR) Gained Today

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First Solar (FSLR - Free Report) ended the recent trading session at $241.31, demonstrating a +1.46% change from the preceding day's closing price. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.19%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.8%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.1%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the largest U.S. solar company had lost 7.06% lagged the Oils-Energy sector's gain of 0.24% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.26%.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of First Solar in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $5.21, indicating a 42.74% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $1.58 billion, indicating a 4.23% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $14.6 per share and a revenue of $5.11 billion, representing changes of +21.46% and 0%, respectively, from the prior year.

Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for First Solar. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. At present, First Solar boasts a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that First Solar has a Forward P/E ratio of 10.21 right now. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 21.21, which means First Solar is trading at a discount to the group.

Meanwhile, FSLR's PEG ratio is currently 0.29. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Solar was holding an average PEG ratio of 0.67 at yesterday's closing price.

The Solar industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 26, placing it within the top 11% of over 250 industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow FSLR in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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