Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) Trading Down 4.4% – What’s Next?

Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) shares traded down 4.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $17.21 and last traded at $17.58. 228,883 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 1,165,014 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on DQ shares. StockNews.com raised Daqo New Energy to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Daqo New Energy from $38.40 to $34.05 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Daiwa America raised shares of Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Nomura Securities raised shares of Daqo New Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.26.

Daqo New Energy Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of -9.71 and a beta of 0.28.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.92) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.80) by ($0.12). Daqo New Energy had a negative return on equity of 1.90% and a negative net margin of 9.16%. The company had revenue of $198.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.09) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Daqo New Energy Corp. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Daqo New Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DQ. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Daqo New Energy by 12,187.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,966 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Daqo New Energy by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,809 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 602 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. raised its stake in Daqo New Energy by 202.3% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 6,387 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 4,274 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Daqo New Energy by 22.2% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,104 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Daqo New Energy by 15.4% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 10,500 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.22% of the company’s stock.

About Daqo New Energy

Daqo New Energy Corp., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells polysilicon to photovoltaic product manufacturers in the People's Republic of China. Its products are used in ingots, wafers, cells, and modules for solar power solutions. The company was formerly known as Mega Stand International Limited and changed its name to Daqo New Energy Corp.