Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 32,971 Shares of Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its stake in Daqo New Energy Corp. (NYSE:DQ) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,638,793 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 32,971 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 4.00% of Daqo New Energy worth $52,195,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Daqo New Energy by 9.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 33,546 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 2,813 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Daqo New Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,053,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Daqo New Energy by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 128,422 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,616,000 after acquiring an additional 26,462 shares during the period. Wexford Capital LP boosted its stake in Daqo New Energy by 395.7% during the third quarter. Wexford Capital LP now owns 164,809 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,357,000 after acquiring an additional 131,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in Daqo New Energy by 1.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 842,921 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $17,170,000 after purchasing an additional 8,983 shares during the period. 47.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on DQ shares. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Daqo New Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Daiwa America raised Daqo New Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Daqo New Energy from $38.40 to $34.05 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com raised Daqo New Energy to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Nomura Securities raised shares of Daqo New Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.26.

Daqo New Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DQ opened at $17.96 on Wednesday. Daqo New Energy Corp. has a 1 year low of $13.62 and a 1 year high of $30.85. The company has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.71 and a beta of 0.28. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $20.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.33.

Daqo New Energy (NYSE:DQ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.92) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.80) by ($0.12). Daqo New Energy had a negative net margin of 9.16% and a negative return on equity of 1.90%. The company had revenue of $198.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.09) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Daqo New Energy Corp. will post -3.5 earnings per share for the current year.

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.