Barclays PLC Grows Stake in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

Barclays PLC lifted its position in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Free Report) by 37.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,920 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 15,507 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.12% of Applied Optoelectronics worth $815,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AAOI. Pingora Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth about $82,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $186,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth about $118,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAOI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. B. Riley downgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James increased their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Northland Securities reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $29.20.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In related news, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total value of $269,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 118,122 shares in the company, valued at $3,181,025.46. This trade represents a 7.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the 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 directly owns 195,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. This trade represents a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 86,769 shares of company stock worth $3,015,537 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAOI traded down $0.06 during trading on Thursday, reaching $31.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,387,763 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,579,839. The business's fifty day moving average price is $34.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.88. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $6.70 and a twelve month high of $44.50. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.22 and a beta of 2.39.

Applied Optoelectronics 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.