Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Trading Up 6% – Here’s Why

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) shot up 6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $43.49 and last traded at $43.20. 661,456 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 2,650,824 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.74.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AAOI shares. Northland Securities upped their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $27.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. B. Riley Financial restated a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.70.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Up 4.5 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.34. 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 company has a market capitalization of $1.92 billion, a PE ratio of -21.01 and a beta of 2.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.56, for a total transaction of $157,800.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 216,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,821,031.24. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total value of $150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,996,473.42. This trade represents a 7.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 66,979 shares of company stock valued at $1,990,637. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 6,787 shares during the period. Pingora Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $82,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 5,956 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth $89,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.