Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Receives "Neutral" Rating from B. Riley

Key Points

• B. Riley raised the price target for Applied Optoelectronics from $13.00 to $15.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating, which suggests a potential downside of 34.55% from the stock's previous close.
• Applied Optoelectronics reported a quarterly loss, with earnings per share at ($0.16), which missed analysts' estimates and showed a significant year-over-year revenue increase of 137.9%.
• Insider activity includes CEO Chih-Hsiang Lin acquiring 21,200 shares at an average price of $18.22 per share, indicating confidence in the company’s outlook.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "neutral" rating restated by analysts at B. Riley in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $15.00 price target on the semiconductor company's stock, up from their previous price target of $13.00. B. Riley's price objective indicates a potential downside of 36.41% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, July 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Trading Up 13.1%

Shares of AAOI stock traded up $2.73 on Friday, reaching $23.59. The company had a trading volume of 3,994,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,399,201. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of -7.03 and a beta of 2.72. The company has a 50-day moving average of $23.46 and a 200-day moving average of $20.32. Applied Optoelectronics has a 12 month low of $7.72 and a 12 month high of $44.50.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.08). Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 42.29% and a negative return on equity of 10.60%. The business had revenue of $102.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $104.96 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.28) earnings per share. Applied Optoelectronics's revenue for the quarter was up 137.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider David C. Kuo sold 11,426 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.10, for a total transaction of $218,236.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 153,900 shares in the company, valued at $2,939,490. This represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.46, for a total value of $82,380.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 318,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,733,268.56. This represents a 0.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,426 shares of company stock worth $332,717. Company insiders own 4.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 497.5% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 962 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 243.9% in the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,297 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,629 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 85.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,785 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 825 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,284 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 175.5% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,218 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,413 shares in the last quarter. 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.