Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $23.45, but opened at $22.41. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $22.51, with a volume of 1,850,040 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AAOI shares. B. Riley raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $13.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on Applied Optoelectronics to $30.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Northland Securities lifted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.00.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.45. The company has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.85 and a beta of 2.64.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.02. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 55.98% and a negative return on equity of 15.40%. The company had revenue of $99.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.37 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.31) earnings per share. Applied Optoelectronics's quarterly revenue was up 145.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.05, for a total transaction of $32,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 321,036 shares in the company, valued at $5,152,627.80. This trade represents a 0.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 23,837 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.06, for a total transaction of $454,333.22. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 278,842 shares in the company, valued at $5,314,728.52. This represents a 7.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,263 shares of company stock worth $726,570. 4.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 979,769 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $36,123,000 after purchasing an additional 70,210 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in 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 worth $14,990,000 after purchasing an additional 631,128 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP grew 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 purchasing an additional 115,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter worth about $31,331,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.