Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Stock Price Down 4.7% - Here's Why

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) were down 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $16.90 and last traded at $16.82. Approximately 1,556,633 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 52% from the average daily volume of 3,268,705 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AAOI shares. Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. B. Riley upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $13.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $30.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.00.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 7.6%

The firm has a market cap of $869.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.60 and a beta of 2.55. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $14.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $99.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.37 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 145.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total value of $46,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 196,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,533,157.86. This trade represents a 1.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 11,426 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.10, for a total transaction of $218,236.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 153,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,939,490. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 39,263 shares of company stock valued at $740,590 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.96% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 14.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,779,563 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $42,666,000 after acquiring an additional 350,145 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 979,769 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $36,123,000 after acquiring an additional 70,210 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 182.7% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 976,520 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $14,990,000 after acquiring an additional 631,128 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 876,543 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $13,455,000 after buying an additional 115,853 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter worth $31,331,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.