Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $15.87, but opened at $23.65. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $21.59, with a volume of 7,994,827 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. B. Riley raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $13.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James boosted 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. Northland Securities reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $25.80.

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Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

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's 50 day simple moving average is $25.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.81 and a beta of 2.36.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $100.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.92 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. Research analysts anticipate that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.72, for a total value of $126,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 212,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,728,731.88. This represents a 1.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 157,813 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,576,577. This represents a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 16,298 shares of company stock valued at $497,701. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Optoelectronics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,429,418 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $89,548,000 after purchasing an additional 241,594 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter valued at approximately $19,019,000. Whale Rock Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter valued at approximately $16,145,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 979,769 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $36,123,000 after acquiring an additional 70,210 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 27.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 887,259 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $12,697,000 after acquiring an additional 192,308 shares during the period. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.