Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,830,000 shares, a decline of 9.1% from the October 31st total of 10,810,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,250,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AAOI. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Northland Securities increased their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. B. Riley dropped their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $27.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.70.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 1.2 %

AAOI stock opened at $40.74 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.78 and a beta of 1.96. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Applied Optoelectronics has a twelve month low of $6.70 and a twelve month high of $43.88.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total value of $150,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,996,473.42. The trade was a 7.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.56, for a total value of $157,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 216,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,821,031.24. The trade was a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 66,979 shares of company stock valued at $1,990,637. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,954,498 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,089,000 after acquiring an additional 442,277 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 47.7% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,596,545 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $22,847,000 after purchasing an additional 515,489 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter valued at $19,019,000. Whale Rock Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth $16,145,000. Finally, Shellback Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter worth about $8,617,000. 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.