Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $43.88 and last traded at $43.27, with a volume of 820790 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $41.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Northland Securities lifted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.70.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $21.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.13. The stock has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.89 and a beta of 1.96.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In related news, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total value of $616,803.05. Following the sale, the insider now owns 195,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. This trade represents a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total value of $269,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 118,122 shares in the company, valued at $3,181,025.46. This trade represents a 7.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 66,979 shares of company stock worth $1,990,637. Insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 29.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,954,498 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,089,000 after buying an additional 442,277 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth about $46,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth about $386,000. California State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth about $511,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter worth about $956,000. Institutional investors own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Optoelectronics

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.