Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $22.26.

DQ has been the topic of several research reports. Roth Mkm decreased their price target on shares of Daqo New Energy from $23.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Daqo New Energy in a report on Thursday, July 11th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Daqo New Energy from $38.40 to $34.05 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Daqo New Energy to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, HSBC upgraded Daqo New Energy from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $15.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Daqo New Energy

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Daqo New Energy by 39.4% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,348 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Daqo New Energy by 117.5% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Daqo New Energy by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,104 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in Daqo New Energy by 20.6% in the 1st quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 10,734 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Daqo New Energy by 12,187.5% in 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.22% of the company’s stock.

Daqo New Energy Trading Up 9.2 %

NYSE:DQ opened at $18.54 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $16.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.44. Daqo New Energy has a 12 month low of $13.62 and a 12 month high of $31.19. The firm has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.70 and a beta of 0.30.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($1.81) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.56) by ($1.25). The firm had revenue of $219.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $406.50 million. Daqo New Energy had a negative net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 1.04%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Daqo New Energy will post -3.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Daqo New Energy announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, July 22nd that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 8.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.