Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Stock Price Down 4.7% – Here’s What Happened

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) was down 4.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $21.06 and last traded at $21.24. Approximately 431,774 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 2,918,738 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.36 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. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $24.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.20.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $100.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.92 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. Equities analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total transaction of $290,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 157,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,576,577. This trade represents a 5.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total value of $46,120.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 196,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,533,157.86. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,298 shares of company stock worth $543,821 over the last quarter. 4.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Corebridge Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 20,253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $747,000 after buying an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,667 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 603 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,262 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 25,529 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $941,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.