Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the five brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $29.20.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AAOI shares. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, B. Riley lowered 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total transaction of $616,803.05. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 195,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,935,610.20. This trade represents a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total value of $269,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 118,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,181,025.46. This represents a 7.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,769 shares of company stock valued at $3,015,537. Insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 6,787 shares during the last quarter. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $82,000. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $89,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter valued at about $109,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

Shares of AAOI stock opened at $37.74 on Friday. 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 $1.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.32 and a beta of 2.37. Applied Optoelectronics has a one year low of $6.70 and a one year high of $44.50. The company’s 50-day moving average is $29.88 and its 200 day moving average is $17.64.

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.