Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 1,329,073 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 13% from the previous session’s volume of 1,171,982 shares.The stock last traded at $23.52 and had previously closed at $22.51.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. 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 research note on Monday, August 26th. Nomura Securities upgraded shares of Daqo New Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. HSBC upgraded shares of Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Daqo New Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.26.

Daqo New Energy Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $18.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.13 and a beta of 0.32.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($1.81) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.56) by ($1.25). The business had revenue of $219.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Daqo New Energy Corp. will post -3.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Daqo New Energy announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, July 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to buy up to 8.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Daqo New Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DQ. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Daqo New Energy by 12,187.5% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,966 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Daqo New Energy by 117.5% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Daqo New Energy by 27.3% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,809 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. grew its stake in shares of Daqo New Energy by 202.3% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 6,387 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 4,274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Daqo New Energy by 22.2% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,104 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 1,470 shares during the last quarter. 47.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.