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FSLR (First Solar) Beneish M-Score : -2.62 (As of Oct. 29, 2024)


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What is First Solar Beneish M-Score?

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.62 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for First Solar's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

FSLR' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -4.13   Med: -2.39   Max: 0.85
Current: -2.62

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of First Solar was 0.85. The lowest was -4.13. And the median was -2.39.


First Solar Beneish M-Score Historical Data

The historical data trend for First Solar's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

* Premium members only.

First Solar Beneish M-Score Chart

First Solar Annual Data
Trend Dec14 Dec15 Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.43 -2.86 -1.88 0.85 -0.37

First Solar Quarterly Data
Sep19 Dec19 Mar20 Jun20 Sep20 Dec20 Mar21 Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.44 -1.81 -0.37 -1.33 -2.62

Competitive Comparison of First Solar's Beneish M-Score

For the Solar subindustry, First Solar's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


First Solar's Beneish M-Score Distribution in the Semiconductors Industry

For the Semiconductors industry and Technology sector, First Solar's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where First Solar's Beneish M-Score falls into.



First Solar Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of First Solar for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 0.8718+0.528 * 0.3682+0.404 * 1.2165+0.892 * 1.2588+0.115 * 0.9991
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 0.8838+4.679 * 0.005845-0.327 * 1.1716
=-2.62

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Jun24) TTM:Last Year (Jun23) TTM:
Total Receivables was $790 Mil.
Revenue was 1010.482 + 794.108 + 1158.553 + 801.09 = $3,764 Mil.
Gross Profit was 498.889 + 346.003 + 502.033 + 376.175 = $1,723 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $3,949 Mil.
Total Assets was $11,014 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $5,239 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $355 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $200 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $1,773 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $471 Mil.
Net Income was 349.356 + 236.616 + 349.239 + 268.398 = $1,204 Mil.
Non Operating Income was -10.644 + -4.542 + -31.046 + -1.809 = $-48 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was 193.014 + 267.723 + 561.109 + 165.427 = $1,187 Mil.
Total Receivables was $720 Mil.
Revenue was 810.673 + 548.286 + 1002.391 + 628.933 = $2,990 Mil.
Gross Profit was 310.42 + 112.051 + 60.613 + 20.982 = $504 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $3,661 Mil.
Total Assets was $8,997 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $4,110 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $279 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $179 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $1,091 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $474 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(789.883 / 3764.233) / (719.719 / 2990.283)
=0.209839 / 0.240686
=0.8718

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(504.066 / 2990.283) / (1723.1 / 3764.233)
=0.168568 / 0.457756
=0.3682

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (3948.923 + 5238.834) / 11014.255) / (1 - (3660.73 + 4109.925) / 8997.166)
=0.16583 / 0.136322
=1.2165

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=3764.233 / 2990.283
=1.2588

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(278.524 / (278.524 + 4109.925)) / (355.355 / (355.355 + 5238.834))
=0.063468 / 0.063522
=0.9991

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(199.653 / 3764.233) / (179.458 / 2990.283)
=0.053039 / 0.060014
=0.8838

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((470.953 + 1772.629) / 11014.255) / ((473.604 + 1090.614) / 8997.166)
=0.203698 / 0.173857
=1.1716

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(1203.609 - -48.041 - 1187.273) / 11014.255
=0.005845

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

First Solar has a M-score of -2.62 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.


First Solar Beneish M-Score Related Terms

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First Solar Business Description

Address
350 West Washington Street, Suite 600, Tempe, AZ, USA, 85288
First Solar designs and manufactures solar photovoltaic panels, modules, and systems for use in utility-scale development projects. The company's solar modules use cadmium telluride to convert sunlight into electricity. This is commonly called thin-film technology. First Solar is the world's largest thin-film solar module manufacturer. It has production lines in Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States, and India.
Executives
Patrick James Buehler officer: Chief Quality and Rel. Officer 28101 CEDAR PARK BLVD., PERRYSBURG OH 43551
Byron Michael Jeffers officer: CAO, Interim 350 WEST WASHINGTON ST., TEMPE AZ 85281
Kuntal Kumar Verma officer: Chief Mfg. Engineering Officer 28101 CEDAR PARK BLVD., PERRYSBURG OH 43551
Mark R Widmar officer: Chief Financial Officer C/O GRAFTECH INTERNATIONAL LTD, 12900 SNOW ROAD, PARMA OH 44130
Jason E. Dymbort officer: General Counsel, Interim 77 RIO ROBLES, SAN JOSE CA 95134
Alexander R. Bradley officer: Chief Financial Officer 77 RIO ROBLES, SAN JOSE CA 95134
Michael Koralewski officer: Chief Mfg. Operations Officer 28101 CEDAR PARK BLVD., PERRYSBURG OH 43551
Michael T Sweeney director GOLDNER HAWN, 3700 WELLS FARGO CENTER, 90 SOUTH 7TH ST, MINNEAPOLIS MN 55402
Paul H Stebbins director C/O WORLD FUEL SERVICES CORP, 9800 N.W. 41ST STREET, SUITE 400, MIAMI FL 33178
Richard D Chapman director 350 WEST WASHINGTON STREET, SUITE 600, TEMPE AZ 85281
Caroline Stockdale officer: EVP, HR & Communications C/O WARNER MUSIC GROUP, 75 ROCKEFELLER PLAZA, NEW YORK NY 10019
R Craig Kennedy director 1844 "R" STREET, NW, WASHINGTON DC 20009
Georges Antoun officer: Chief Operating Officer C/O FIRST SOLAR, INC., 350 WEST WASHINGTON ST., SUITE 600, TEMPE AZ 85281
Markus Gloeckler officer: Co-Chief Technology Officer 28101 CEDAR PARK BLVD., PERRYSBURG OH 43551
William J Post director 400 NORTH FIFTH STREET, ., PHOENIX AZ 85004