The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Acquires New Stake in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,184 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $118,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 1st quarter worth about $46,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 6,787 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter worth about $89,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth approximately $161,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter valued at approximately $109,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAOI opened at $18.57 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $722.52 million, a P/E ratio of -10.20 and a beta of 1.96. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $13.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.20. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.66 and a fifty-two week high of $24.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $43.27 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.14 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 34.84% and a negative return on equity of 19.82%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.31) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,996,473.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Raymond James raised Applied Optoelectronics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. B. Riley decreased 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 restated a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.75.

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.