Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,930,000 shares, a growth of 26.0% from the March 15th total of 3,120,000 shares. Approximately 6.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 882,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.5 days.

Daqo New Energy Trading Down 0.9 %

Daqo New Energy stock traded down $0.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $14.00. 910,789 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,052,082. Daqo New Energy has a 52 week low of $12.90 and a 52 week high of $30.85. The business’s 50 day moving average is $18.32 and its 200 day moving average is $19.43. The company has a market capitalization of $923.83 million, a P/E ratio of -7.57 and a beta of 0.37.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The semiconductor company reported ($2.71) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.69) by ($2.02). Daqo New Energy had a negative return on equity of 1.90% and a negative net margin of 9.16%. The business had revenue of $195.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $153.54 million. Equities analysts expect that Daqo New Energy will post -3.5 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on DQ shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Daqo New Energy to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Daqo New Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $17.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.21.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Daqo New Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Daqo New Energy by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 842,921 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $17,170,000 after buying an additional 8,983 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Daqo New Energy by 9.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 33,546 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $683,000 after purchasing an additional 2,813 shares in the last quarter. Ariose Capital Management Ltd raised its position in shares of Daqo New Energy by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Ariose Capital Management Ltd now owns 1,505,709 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,271,000 after purchasing an additional 324,585 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Daqo New Energy by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 20,067 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 1,410 shares during the period. Finally, Greenwoods Asset Management Hong Kong Ltd. grew its stake in Daqo New Energy by 5,286.6% in the 4th quarter. Greenwoods Asset Management Hong Kong Ltd. now owns 2,714,780 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $52,775,000 after buying an additional 2,664,381 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.22% of the company’s stock.

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.