Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Upgraded to Sell by StockNews.com

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $9.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. B. Riley cut their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $17.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Applied Optoelectronics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.75.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AAOI opened at $18.57 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $722.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.20 and a beta of 1.96. The business has a 50 day moving average of $13.02 and a 200 day moving average of $11.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Applied Optoelectronics has a 1-year low of $6.66 and a 1-year high of $24.75.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.29) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $43.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.31) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $150,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,996,473.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% in 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 during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth $161,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter worth $109,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

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.