Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $36.86, but opened at $35.97. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $35.71, with a volume of 688,115 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. B. Riley lowered shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James upped their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target 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. Two research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Applied Optoelectronics has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.40 and a beta of 2.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $31.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, Director William H. Yeh sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.08, for a total value of $430,800.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 223,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,630,017.04. This represents a 4.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Min-Chu (Mike) Chen sold 9,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $391,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 165,054 shares in the company, valued at $6,602,160. The trade was a 5.60 % 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 valued at $3,015,537 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Optoelectronics

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 6,787 shares in the last quarter. Pingora Partners LLC purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at approximately $82,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $89,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at $118,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Company 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.