Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Price Target Cut to $45.00 by Analysts at B. Riley Financial

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) had its target price cut by equities research analysts at B. Riley Financial from $92.00 to $45.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the semiconductor company’s stock. B. Riley Financial‘s price objective suggests a potential downside of 6.44% from the stock’s current price.

AAOI has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $170.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Northland Securities raised Applied Optoelectronics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $220.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.60.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

NASDAQ:AAOI traded up $1.21 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.10. 8,418,125 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,561,360. Applied Optoelectronics has a one year low of $18.50 and a one year high of $233.67. The company has a market capitalization of $4.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -62.54 and a beta of 4.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $94.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $113.19. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $269.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $268.11 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 1.98% and a negative net margin of 9.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 127.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.09) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Shu-Hua Yeh sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $720,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 371,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,590,904.94. The trade was a 1.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.87, for a total transaction of $411,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 363,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,359,092.16. This represents a 1.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 52,172 shares of company stock worth $5,985,036 in the last quarter. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $955,672,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,817,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $74,703,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,712,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,567,000. 61.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Applied Optoelectronics

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Optoelectronics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AAOI reported third-quarter revenue of $269.88 million, up 127.5% year over year, and earnings of $0.17 per share, above analysts’ $0.14 estimate. The company also said it achieved a sixth consecutive quarter of record revenue and returned to GAAP profitability. Third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Data-center sales more than tripled from a year earlier, and next-quarter guidance points to further growth—supportive signals for demand related to AI networking. Earnings reaction and outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Rosenblatt cut its price target to $115 from $220 but maintained a Buy rating. The lower target signals a more cautious outlook, while the continued Buy recommendation remains supportive. Price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: The company granted 1,346 shares to three new employees under its inducement plan, a small equity award with limited apparent near-term financial impact. Employee equity grants
• Negative Sentiment: Gross margin remained around 28%, tempering the strong sales growth. Plans to expand U.S. manufacturing capacity in 2027 are also taking longer because of power and construction issues, which could constrain execution. Margins and manufacturing update
• Negative Sentiment: AAOI has faced selling alongside other AI-optical stocks, even as companies in the group report strong results. This sector-wide pullback may be weighing on shares independently of AAOI’s earnings beat. AI-optical sector selloff

Applied Optoelectronics Company Profile

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc (NASDAQ: AAOI) develops and manufactures fiber-optic networking products and solutions. Its offerings include optical transceivers, transmitters, receivers, lasers, and related components used to transmit data across fiber-optic networks.

The company serves several communications markets, including data centers, broadband access networks, cable television, and telecommunications. Its products are designed for applications such as high-speed data transmission, fiber-to-the-home and other broadband deployments, network connectivity, and communications infrastructure.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, Applied Optoelectronics supports customers in multiple regions, including North America, Asia, and other international markets.