Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Stock Passes Above 50-Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $18.06 and traded as high as $26.74. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $26.69, with a volume of 4,571,431 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAOI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.80.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average is $18.70 and its 200-day moving average is $21.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

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, beating 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 business had revenue of $99.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.37 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.31) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 145.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.05, for a total transaction of $32,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 321,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,152,627.80. The trade was a 0.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 11,426 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.10, for a total transaction of $218,236.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 153,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,939,490. The trade was a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 39,263 shares of company stock worth $726,570 in the last ninety days. 4.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,331,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at $23,354,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 631,128 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 1st quarter worth $7,455,000. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter worth about $13,035,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.