Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Trading Down 2.7% - Time to Sell?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 2.7% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $36.40 and last traded at $36.89. Approximately 893,911 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 2,225,600 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Northland Securities reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $40.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. B. Riley cut Applied Optoelectronics from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $14.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.47 and a beta of 2.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.27, for a total value of $352,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 167,813 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,918,764.51. The trade was a 5.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total value of $616,803.05. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 195,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. The trade was a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,769 shares of company stock worth $3,015,537 in the last quarter. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 90.7% in the second 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 during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,109,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter worth $1,319,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter worth about $19,019,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $353,000. Institutional investors own 61.72% of the company's stock.

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.