Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $18.51, but opened at $18.10. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $17.74, with a volume of 544,943 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on AAOI shares. B. Riley reduced their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded Applied Optoelectronics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $17.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $13.75.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 4.8 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $685.95 million, a P/E ratio of -9.69 and a beta of 1.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm's fifty day moving average is $13.24 and its 200-day moving average is $11.22.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by $0.01. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 19.82% and a negative net margin of 34.84%. The business had revenue of $43.27 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.31) EPS. Applied Optoelectronics's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $150,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 132,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,996,473.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Applied Optoelectronics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 3rd quarter worth $303,000. Connective Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter worth $250,000. Shellback Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $8,617,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter valued at about $118,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 90.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 75,981 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $630,000 after buying an additional 36,138 shares during the period. 61.72% of the stock is 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.