Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Up 10.5% on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) shot up 10.5% during trading on Friday after Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on the stock from $27.50 to $44.00. Rosenblatt Securities currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Optoelectronics traded as high as $37.21 and last traded at $36.45. 576,550 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 2,720,584 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.00.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. B. Riley cut Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Northland Securities upped their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total transaction of $616,803.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 195,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,935,610.20. This represents a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 86,769 shares of company stock valued at $2,813,037. 5.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 90.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 75,981 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $630,000 after purchasing an additional 36,138 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth approximately $1,109,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth approximately $1,319,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth $19,019,000. Finally, Whale Rock Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $16,145,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Up 10.4 %

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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.68 and a beta of 2.37.

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.