Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Reduces Stock Position in Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lowered its stake in Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) by 92.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 72,800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 849,700 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Daqo New Energy were worth $2,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Daqo New Energy by 117.5% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Daqo New Energy by 112.4% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,839 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $182,000 after acquiring an additional 3,619 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Daqo New Energy during the 1st quarter worth $256,000. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Daqo New Energy during the 1st quarter worth $264,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.22% of the company’s stock.

Daqo New Energy Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of DQ traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $17.23. 598,801 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,121,632. The company has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.85 and a beta of 0.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $18.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.92. Daqo New Energy Corp. has a 52-week low of $14.21 and a 52-week high of $40.13.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $415.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $491.90 million. Daqo New Energy had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 2.46%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.52 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Daqo New Energy Corp. will post 0.46 EPS for the current year.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DQ shares. HSBC reiterated a “reduce” rating and set a $17.50 price target (down previously from $23.50) on shares of Daqo New Energy in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Daqo New Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Daqo New Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Daqo New Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.63.

Daqo New Energy 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.