Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) CFO Sells $46,120.00 in Stock

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total transaction of $46,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 196,581 shares in the company, valued at $4,533,157.86. The trade was a 1.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ AAOI opened at $20.43 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.96. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $44.50. The firm has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.92 and a beta of 2.36. 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 (NASDAQ:AAOI) last announced its earnings results 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%. The company had revenue of $100.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.92 million. Equities analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAOI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price target (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, B. Riley upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $25.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AAOI. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter worth about $63,000. Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter worth about $82,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.