First Solar, Inc. (FSLR)
Information Technology · Semiconductors · US stock · S&P 500 component
$171.25
▼ -3.57 (2.04%)
Fair valueUndervalued
$242 +41.1% to fair value
$121fair band $206–$293$362
Day's range
$168.63 – $172.85
52-week range
$168.60 – $320.95
About First Solar, Inc.
First Solar makes thin film solar modules and sells them to developers and owners of large solar power plants, mainly in the United States. Its technology differs from the crystalline silicon panels made by many rivals. Revenue comes from selling modules, often under multi-year supply contracts, and results depend on government incentives, trade policy, plant utilization and demand for utility-scale solar.
First Solar, Inc. generated $5.4 billion in revenue during the last twelve months. The three-year revenue growth rate is 25.8% a year. Operating margin stands at 33.6%, showing profit left after running costs. Return on invested capital stands at 19%. Net debt to EBITDA is -0.7 times, which means the company holds more cash than debt. No dividend is paid to shareholders. The X-Ray Score is 70 out of 100.
Price chart
52-wk range $168.60 – $320.95Volume 2,353,461Daily, split-adjusted
Vitals
Market cap$18.4B
52-week range$168.60 – $320.95
Volume (last day)2,353,461
P/E (TTM)10.6
EBIT / EV yield10.7%
Free-cash-flow yield8.1%
Dividend yieldNo dividend
Revenue (TTM)$5.4B
Net income (TTM)$1.7B
Operating margin33.6%
Return on capital18.6%
Debt incl. leases$157M
Cash & securities$1.7B
Debt = borrowings plus lease liabilities. Cash & securities = cash, equivalents and short-term marketable securities (long-term securities are not counted, so net cash can be understated for companies that hold large long-term investments). Net debt = debt minus cash & securities. Source: latest SEC 10-Q/10-K. EBIT / EV yield = operating profit divided by market cap plus net debt.
Fair value estimate
$242middle half of models $211 – $260
Undervalued
+41.1% to fair value
Average of the 13 valuation models that pass our checks: multiples, discounted cash flow, dividend discount and earnings power value. A model more than 100% above or 60% below the price is left out as unrealistic. Model uncertainty is High, based on how far apart the models are. Undervalued or Overvalued means the gap to fair value is more than 17.5%.
Peak-cycle earnings: the current operating margin is more than 1.5x its 7-year average, so multiples applied to today's profit may overstate value; model uncertainty is set to High
Price $171
Undervalued < $206Fair $206 – $293Overvalued > $293
P/E multiple
$195
P/B multiple
$229
P/S multiple
$214
EV/EBITDA multiple
$301
EV/EBIT multiple
$328
EV/revenue multiple
$211
10-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$263
5-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$260
10-year DCF, revenue exit
$255
5-year DCF, revenue exit
$246
10-year DCF, growth exit
$223
5-year DCF, growth exit
$209
Earnings power value
$207
Growth the price implies
23.3%/yr
A model estimate, not a price target or recommendation. Inputs: risk-free 5.13%, equity risk premium 4.30% (Damodaran). How it works.
What this means
Average business at a low price
Our models put fair value above today's price, but models can be wrong, so check the business first. A high score does not guarantee a good outcome; it shifts the odds a little. Use the checklist as a prompt for your own research.
Before you invest · decision checklist
Ticked boxes are filled in from our data; the rest are yours to answer.
The five-lens scan
Every score explained in one sentence, ranked against Information Technology peers. Open a lens to see the numbers behind it.
Strong: 70 to 100Fair: 50 to 69Weak: under 50No score: not enough data
Valuation
Strong
95/100
Cheap against its sector on earnings and cash flow.
See the numbers →
EBIT / EV yield10.7%
Free-cash-flow yield8.1%
Fair value vs price1.4×
Growth
Fair
70/100
Growing at a typical pace for its sector.
See the numbers →
Revenue growth (3y)25.8%
Growth consistency90%
Profitability
Weak
40/100
Earns lower returns on its capital than most peers.
See the numbers →
Return on invested capital18.6%
Operating margin33.6%
Gross profitability17.7%
Financial health
Strong
76/100
Balance sheet looks strong: debt is well covered.
See the numbers →
Piotroski F-Score7 / 9
Net debt / EBITDA-0.7×
Interest cover46.9×
Dividends
None
–/100
Pays no dividend.
See the numbers →
Quarterly results: last 6 quarters
+6.4%
Mar '25
+8.6%
Jun '25
+79.7%
Sep '25
+11.1%
Dec '25
+23.6%
Mar '26
-3.7%
Jun '26
Revenue against the same quarter a year earlier. Latest quarter revenue $1.1B, diluted EPS $3.92.
Compare with peers
MU Micron Technology Inc79 NVDA Nvidia Corp67 AVGO Broadcom Inc.60 MPWR Monolithic Power Syste...58Other Semiconductors companies by X-Ray Score.
SWOT analysis: First Solar, Inc.
Strengthsinside the company
- Return on invested capital is 18.6%, against a median of 12.7% for industry peers.
- Revenue has grown 25.8% a year over three years (median -1.2% for industry peers).
- Free cash flow equals 8.1% of the market value, which funds dividends, buybacks or debt paydown.
- Cash exceeds debt (net debt is negative), which gives room to invest or ride out a downturn.
Weaknessesinside the company
- No clear weakness in the figures we track.
Opportunitiesvaluation and setting
- Trades at 10.6x earnings, 75% below the 43.0x median of industry peers.
- The price is 41% below our fair value estimate, with the gap larger than the margin we allow for error.
- Our Market Compass rates the backdrop for Information Technology as favourable.
Threatsvaluation and setting
- Valuation uncertainty is high: the models give widely different values, so the fair value range is wide.
- The price trend is down on the daily and weekly signals.
- Earnings in Semiconductors follow the industry cycle, so margins and profits can swing from year to year.
Written by fixed rules from the figures on this page and the peer table below: filings, our fair value, the sector climate and the price trend. It summarises the data, it is not a forecast or advice.
Compare FSLR with peers and sector
Medians of 14 Semiconductors peers and of 74 Information Technology stocks in our universe.
Largest peers (X-Ray Score): NVDA 67, AVGO 60, MU 79, AMD 48, INTC 17, TXN 44.
| Metric | FSLR | Peers | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Ray Score (out of 100) | 70 | 43 | 50 |
| Valuation | 95 | 31 | 50 |
| Growth | 69 | 31 | 54 |
| Profitability | 40 | 45 | 50 |
| Financial health | 76 | 58 | 49 |
| Dividends | – | 53 | 50 |
Sector leaders: highest X-Ray Score in Information Technology
FSLR ranks #6 of 75 in Information Technology and #2 of 15 in Semiconductors by X-Ray Score. A higher score is stronger on our five pillars; it is a ranking of facts, not a forecast.
Green means better than the peer median, red worse (only where a higher or lower figure is clearly better). A dash means too few companies report the figure. P/E, EV/EBITDA and price changes are not graded: a different level is not good or bad by itself.
Factor ratings for FSLR
Each factor is rated by where FSLR stands among the 75 Information Technology stocks in our universe.
Rating against the sector
Goodthe top third of these stocks
Averagethe middle third of these stocks
Badthe bottom third of these stocks
"Beats" is the share of those stocks it is ahead of.
Against its own history
The last columns set today's figure against the company's own median of its last five financial years:
▲ Betterbetter than its usual level
▼ Worseworse than its usual level
≈ In linewithin its usual range
For valuation factors Good means cheaper than most of the sector and Better means cheaper than usual for this company, which is not the same as a bargain.
In total: 12 Good · 7 Average · 2 Bad of 21
Growth: 2 · 0 · 0
Profitability: 2 · 2 · 1
Financial strength: 3 · 1 · 0
Valuation: 5 · 0 · 0
Cash flow: 0 · 3 · 0
Efficiency: 0 · 1 · 1
| Factor | FSLR | Rating | Sector median | Own 5-year median | Against own history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growth | |||||
| Revenue growth, 3 years a year | +25.8% | Good beats 87% | +9.7% | – | – |
| Revenue growth, last year | +24.1% | Good beats 77% | +13.7% | +24.1% | ≈ In line |
| Profitability | |||||
| Gross margin | 44.0% | Bad beats 24% | 57.8% | 39.2% | ▲ Better |
| Operating margin | 33.6% | Good beats 77% | 20.3% | 25.8% | ▲ Better |
| Net margin | 32.5% | Good beats 85% | 17.8% | 25.0% | ▲ Better |
| Return on invested capital | 18.6% | Average beats 48% | 19.4% | – | – |
| Return on equity | 16.9% | Average beats 41% | 21.0% | 12.4% | ▲ Better |
| Financial strength | |||||
| Net debt / EBITDA | -0.7x | Good beats 93% | 0.8x | -1.3x | ▼ Worse |
| Interest cover | 46.9x | Average beats 62% | 23.0x | 36.2x | ▲ Better |
| Current ratio | 2.52 | Good beats 78% | 1.57 | 3.55 | ▼ Worse |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 / 9 | Good beats 68% | 6 / 9 | – | – |
| Valuation | |||||
| P/E ratio | 10.6x | Good beats 98% | 33.6x | 19.1x | ▲ Better |
| Price / book | 1.8x | Good beats 98% | 8.3x | 2.7x | ▲ Better |
| Price / sales | 3.4x | Good beats 77% | 6.9x | 5.4x | ▲ Better |
| EV / EBITDA | 7.1x | Good beats 98% | 24.7x | 12.1x | ▲ Better |
| Free cash flow yield | 8.1% | Good beats 92% | 3.4% | -1.6% | ▲ Better |
| Cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow margin | 27.9% | Average beats 63% | 22.3% | -7.3% | ▲ Better |
| Cash from operations / net income | 1.23 | Average beats 35% | 1.39 | 0.83 | ▲ Better |
| Accruals (lower is better) | −3.1% | Average beats 37% | −4.4% | – | – |
| Efficiency | |||||
| Inventory turnover | 2.8x | Average beats 37% | 3.9x | 3.3x | ▼ Worse |
| Days sales outstanding | 100 days | Bad beats 6% | 63 days | 73 days | ▼ Worse |
These ratings compare companies with each other and describe the past; they are not a forecast, a recommendation or part of the X-Ray Score. A factor is left out when its data is missing or meaningless (for example a P/E on negative earnings). A dash in the history columns means fewer than three usable years.
Fundamentals checklist
● 9 Good · ● 4 Average · ● 1 BadCash quality
Earnings backed by cashAverage
Free-cash-flow yieldGood
Risk models
Altman Z''Good
Piotroski F-ScoreGood
Growth
Revenue growth (3y)Good
Growth consistencyAverage
Balance sheet
Current ratioGood
Net debt / EBITDAGood
Interest coverAverage
Valuation
Fair value vs priceGood
EBIT / EV yieldGood
Profitability
Return on invested capitalAverage
Operating marginGood
Gross profitabilityBad
Each check is graded against the company's sector, not a fixed number. Checklist score 69/100.
Financials
| FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.9B | $2.6B | $3.3B | $4.2B | $5.2B |
| Operating income | $587M | −$27M | $857M | $1.4B | $1.6B |
| Net income | $469M | −$44M | $831M | $1.3B | $1.5B |
| Operating cash flow | $238M | $873M | $602M | $1.2B | $2.1B |
| Operating margin | 20.1% | -1.0% | 25.8% | 33.2% | 30.6% |
| Free cash flow | −$303M | −$30M | −$785M | −$308M | $1.2B |
| Diluted EPS | $4.38 | $-0.41 | $7.74 | $12.02 | $14.21 |
Fiscal years, from SEC filings.
Technical summary
Daily
Strongly bearish
3 bullish · 1 neutral · 12 bearish
Weekly
Strongly bearish
0 bullish · 1 neutral · 11 bearish
Monthly
Strongly bearish
1 bullish · 1 neutral · 6 bearish
Moving averages (daily)
| SMA 10 | 176.7 | Bearish |
| EMA 10 | 175.6 | Bearish |
| SMA 20 | 176.6 | Bearish |
| EMA 20 | 179.4 | Bearish |
| SMA 50 | 194.3 | Bearish |
| EMA 50 | 192.1 | Bearish |
| SMA 100 | 216.9 | Bearish |
| EMA 100 | 204.9 | Bearish |
| SMA 200 | 217.9 | Bearish |
| EMA 200 | 212.4 | Bearish |
Oscillators (daily)
| RSI (14) | 38.15 | Neutral |
| MACD (12, 26) | -5.81 | Bearish |
| Momentum (12) | -4.76 | Bearish |
| Stochastic %K (14) | 13.64 | Bullish |
| Williams %R (14) | -86.36 | Bullish |
| CCI (20) | -142.8 | Bullish |
Pivot points (classic, last session)
S3 164.7 | S2 166.7 | S1 169.0 | Pivot 170.9 | R1 173.2 | R2 175.1 | R3 177.4 |
Signals describe what the chart is doing, not what to do. Moving averages: price above the average is bullish. Oscillators use the usual thresholds (RSI 30/70, Stochastic 20/80, CCI ±100, Williams %R −80/−20; MACD and momentum above zero are bullish). Weekly and monthly views use closing prices only.
ETFs that hold FSLR
| ETF | Share of the fund |
|---|---|
| TAN Invesco Solar | 11.74% |
| ICLN iShares Global Clean Energy | 8.06% |
| FXN First Trust Energy AlphaDEX | 2.73% |
| XSD SPDR S&P Semiconductor | 1.99% |
| RPG Invesco S&P 500 Pure Growth | 1.35% |
| RSPT Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Technolog... | 1.16% |
| SPHB Invesco S&P 500 High Beta | 1.04% |
| IYE iShares U.S. Energy | 0.94% |
The eight funds with the largest weight in FSLR among the ETFs we cover, from each fund's latest SEC Form N-PORT (quarter-end positions, so they can be months old). All ETFs.
FSLR SEC filings
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Shareholder vote results
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
DEF 14ASEC EDGAR
Proxy statement
10-KSEC EDGAR
Annual report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
Where the numbers come from
Statements SEC EDGAR filings (10-K, 10-Q), quarters derived from year-to-date figures.
Prices end-of-day closes, split-adjusted.
Industry inputs beta, multiples and equity risk premium from Damodaran Online (NYU Stern).
StocksXray is for education only and is not financial advice. Scores and fair values are model estimates from public filings and carry uncertainty.