DAQO New Energy (NYSE:DQ) Trading 8.9% Higher – Still a Buy?

DAQO New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) shares were up 8.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $33.53 and last traded at $33.3360. Approximately 1,268,961 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 19% from the average daily volume of 1,068,126 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.60.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $18.30 target price on shares of DAQO New Energy and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Roth Capital set a $30.00 price target on shares of DAQO New Energy and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of DAQO New Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. New Street Research set a $15.40 price objective on shares of DAQO New Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on DAQO New Energy from $27.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $27.04.

DAQO New Energy Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $27.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.17. The firm has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of -6.54 and a beta of 0.73.

DAQO New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.61) by $0.39. The business had revenue of $162.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $176.78 million. DAQO New Energy had a negative return on equity of 5.89% and a negative net margin of 53.74%. Sell-side analysts forecast that DAQO New Energy Corp. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

DAQO New Energy announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 26th that permits the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DAQO New Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in DAQO New Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $316,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 1.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,745,544 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $31,612,000 after purchasing an additional 26,359 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of DAQO New Energy by 227.3% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 162,085 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,935,000 after purchasing an additional 112,562 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of DAQO New Energy in the first quarter valued at $187,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in DAQO New Energy in the first quarter valued at $837,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.22% of the company’s stock.

DAQO New Energy Company Profile

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.