Wall Street Zen Downgrades DAQO New Energy (NYSE:DQ) to Sell

Key Points

• DAQO New Energy's stock rating has been downgraded from "hold" to "sell" by Wall Street Zen, indicating a negative outlook for the company.
• Despite the downgrade, other analysts** have maintained a positive stance, with a "buy" rating and a consensus target price of $26.10.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings report showed a revenue of $75.19 million, significantly below the consensus estimate of $140.54 million, highlighting financial challenges.

Wall Street Zen cut shares of DAQO New Energy (NYSE:DQ - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Sunday.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. HSBC raised DAQO New Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Citigroup started coverage on DAQO New Energy in a report on Friday, July 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $27.00 price objective on the stock. Glj Research reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $30.51 target price on shares of DAQO New Energy in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of DAQO New Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.10.

DAQO New Energy Stock Down 1.9%

DAQO New Energy stock traded down $0.51 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,031,552 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,359,473. DAQO New Energy has a fifty-two week low of $12.40 and a fifty-two week high of $30.85. The company has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.43 and a beta of 0.50. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.08.

DAQO New Energy (NYSE:DQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($1.14) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.16) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $75.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $140.54 million. DAQO New Energy had a negative return on equity of 6.54% and a negative net margin of 65.64%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that DAQO New Energy will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DAQO New Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 119,786 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,329,000 after purchasing an additional 25,647 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,745,544 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $31,612,000 after acquiring an additional 26,359 shares in the last quarter. Continental General Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Continental General Insurance Co. now owns 5,966,202 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $108,048,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 227.3% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 162,085 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $2,935,000 after acquiring an additional 112,562 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of DAQO New Energy by 514.3% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 501,145 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $9,026,000 after acquiring an additional 419,569 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.