Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Trading 9.7% Higher - Time to Buy?

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) were up 9.7% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $11.04 and last traded at $11.02. Approximately 1,782,081 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 4,075,894 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Rosenblatt Securities cut their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $36.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $20.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Thursday. Finally, B. Riley raised Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $13.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Applied Optoelectronics presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $22.40.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 1.8 %

The company has a market cap of $695.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.10 and a beta of 2.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.86. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. The firm had revenue of $100.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.92 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 196,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,533,157.86. The trade was a 1.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 4.96% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position 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 during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the first quarter worth about $370,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 9,789.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,736 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $2,260,000 after buying an additional 14,587 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 36,471 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,344,000 after buying an additional 1,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,068,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.72% of the company's stock.

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.