In the latest close session, First Solar (FSLR) was down 1.61% at $162.44. The stock's change was less than the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.33%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.63%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.22%.
The largest U.S. solar company's stock has dropped by 1.63% in the past month, falling short of the Oils-Energy sector's gain of 4.04% and the S&P 500's gain of 4.07%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of First Solar in its upcoming earnings disclosure. On that day, First Solar is projected to report earnings of $2.65 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 18.46%. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $1.02 billion, showing a 1.18% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.
For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $14.73 per share and a revenue of $4.97 billion, representing changes of +22.55% and +18.2%, respectively, from the prior year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for First Solar should also be noted by investors. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.
Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1.36% higher. At present, First Solar boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Valuation is also important, so investors should note that First Solar has a Forward P/E ratio of 11.21 right now. This represents a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 16.34.
Also, we should mention that FSLR has a PEG ratio of 0.33. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. As the market closed yesterday, the Solar industry was having an average PEG ratio of 0.61.
The Solar industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 67, which puts it in the top 28% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to use Zacks.com to monitor all these stock-influencing metrics, and more, throughout the forthcoming trading sessions.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
First Solar, Inc. (FSLR): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
Zacks Investment Research
