Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Down 4.4% on Insider Selling

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) were down 4.4% on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $30.97 and last traded at $31.08. Approximately 1,256,881 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 2,825,300 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.50.

Specifically, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,298 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.17, for a total value of $80,820.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 209,831 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,379,756.27. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James upped 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 lowered Applied Optoelectronics from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $14.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Northland Securities reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 5.6 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of -14.90 and a beta of 2.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.02.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased 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 valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 36,138 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,109,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,319,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth about $19,019,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at about $353,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.