Applied Optoelectronics Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:AAOI)

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 11,569 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 62% compared to the typical volume of 7,148 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. B. Riley cut shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James increased their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price target (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AAOI traded down $0.60 during trading on Thursday, reaching $24.59. 4,018,801 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,454,090. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Applied Optoelectronics has a 1-year low of $6.70 and a 1-year high of $44.50. The firm has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.04 and a beta of 2.36.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. The firm had revenue of $100.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.92 million. Analysts anticipate that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Min-Chu (Mike) Chen sold 9,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $391,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 165,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,602,160. This trade represents a 5.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William H. Yeh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.08, for a total transaction of $430,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 223,538 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,630,017.04. This trade represents a 4.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,088 shares of company stock valued at $1,672,801. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter worth $82,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

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.