Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Down 13.8% – Here’s What Happened

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) shares fell 13.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $12.10 and last traded at $11.95. 1,796,226 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 4,195,448 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAOI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James boosted their price target on Applied Optoelectronics to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report 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 note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Northland Securities reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 target price (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.80.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 15.7 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $583.01 million, a P/E ratio of -5.68 and a beta of 2.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.61.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $100.27 million during 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $290,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 157,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,576,577. The trade was a 5.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total transaction of $46,120.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 196,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,533,157.86. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,298 shares of company stock valued at $543,821 over the last ninety days. 4.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,150 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. FMR LLC increased its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,262 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $157,000 after buying an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.