Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Stock Price Up 15.4% After Analyst Upgrade

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 15.4% during mid-day trading on Monday after Northland Securities raised their price target on the stock to $50.00. Northland Securities currently has a buy rating on the stock. Applied Optoelectronics traded as high as $17.32 and last traded at $17.85. Approximately 1,043,429 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 3,419,462 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.47.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on AAOI. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 7th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target 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. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $30.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, insider David C. Kuo sold 11,426 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.10, for a total value 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 $2,939,490. This represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.05, for a total value of $32,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 321,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,152,627.80. This represents a 0.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 39,263 shares of company stock valued at $726,570. Corporate insiders own 4.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AAOI. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 61,017 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $937,000 after buying an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 25,579 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 2,415 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the first quarter worth $7,455,000. Twin Tree Management LP lifted its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 15,573.4% during the first quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 10,031 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 9,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the first quarter worth $77,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Optoelectronics Trading Up 17.8%

The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.12 and a beta of 2.64. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $15.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 15.40% and a negative net margin of 55.98%. 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 business posted ($0.31) EPS. The business's revenue was up 145.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.