Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the five brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $29.20.

AAOI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Northland Securities restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. B. Riley cut shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $14.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

AAOI stock traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $30.88. 1,928,038 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,635,553. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $34.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of -14.99 and a beta of 2.39. Applied Optoelectronics has a 52 week low of $6.70 and a 52 week high of $44.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, Director Min-Chu (Mike) Chen sold 9,790 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $391,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 165,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,602,160. This trade represents a 5.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.27, for a total transaction of $352,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 167,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,918,764.51. This trade represents a 5.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 86,769 shares of company stock worth $3,015,537 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter valued at approximately $956,000. Rhumbline Advisers bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at $449,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 616,701 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $5,113,000 after buying an additional 24,259 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $194,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 51.1% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 541,787 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $4,491,000 after acquiring an additional 183,260 shares during the period. 61.72% of the stock is 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.