Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) to a sell rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Monday. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. B. Riley downgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Up 7.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAOI opened at $25.19 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business’s 50 day moving average is $30.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.92. Applied Optoelectronics has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $44.50. The firm has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.23 and a beta of 2.36.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Research analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.18 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $290,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 157,813 shares in the company, valued at $4,576,577. This trade represents a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,298 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.17, for a total value of $80,820.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 209,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,379,756.27. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 46,088 shares of company stock worth $1,672,801 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,262 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $82,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.