Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Trading Up 6.1% – Here’s What Happened

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) shares shot up 6.1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $34.20 and last traded at $32.00. 1,444,524 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the average session volume of 2,781,017 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on AAOI. B. Riley lowered Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Trading Up 8.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a PE ratio of -15.89 and a beta of 2.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.61. The business has a 50-day moving average of $34.62 and a 200 day moving average of $20.61.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.72, for a total value of $126,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 212,129 shares in the company, valued at $6,728,731.88. The trade was a 1.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total transaction of $269,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 118,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,181,025.46. This represents a 7.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 100,769 shares of company stock worth $3,432,417 over the last ninety days. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AAOI. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 47.7% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,596,545 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $22,847,000 after buying an additional 515,489 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter valued at about $19,019,000. Whale Rock Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth about $16,145,000. Shellback Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter worth about $8,617,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 909,559 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $13,018,000 after purchasing an additional 60,241 shares in the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Company Profile

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells fiber-optic networking products in the United States, Taiwan, and China. It offers optical modules, optical filters, lasers, laser components, subassemblies, transmitters and transceivers, turn-key equipment, headend, node, distribution equipment, and amplifiers.