Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Receives $35.60 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.60.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Northland Securities set a $45.00 price target on Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Thursday. Finally, B. Riley Financial reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $15.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Monday, November 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 11,693 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.25, for a total transaction of $587,573.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 290,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,575,012.50. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 17,467 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.17, for a total value of $876,319.39. Following the sale, the insider owned 111,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,602,132.71. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 66,520 shares of company stock worth $3,080,367. Insiders own 4.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 1,386 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC grew its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 7,503 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 16,073 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $560,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 1,923.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 769 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 166.7% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.70% of the company’s stock.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

Shares of AAOI stock opened at $51.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -16.05 and a beta of 3.32. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $38.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.35. Applied Optoelectronics has a one year low of $9.71 and a one year high of $54.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

About Applied Optoelectronics

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc develops and manufactures high-speed fiber-optic networking products designed to support the growing bandwidth demands of data centers, telecommunications carriers and internet content providers. The company’s core offerings include pluggable optical transceiver modules, transponders and optical components that enable data transmission at rates ranging from 1G to 400G. These products are used to facilitate long-haul, metro and intra-data center connectivity, addressing the need for scalable, low-latency and energy-efficient solutions in modern network infrastructures.

The company’s product portfolio spans small-form factor pluggable modules such as SFP+, QSFP+ and QSFP28 units, as well as more advanced form factors like CFP2 and OSFP for ultra-high-speed applications.