Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Down 5.6% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Applied Optoelectronics shares fell 5.6% to $49.89, down from a previous close of $52.85, with trading volume roughly in line with its daily average.
• Analyst views were mixed, but the consensus rating remained Moderate Buy with a $111.60 price target. B. Riley cut its target to $45 and rated the stock neutral, while other firms maintained or upgraded positive ratings.
• The company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $0.17 versus $0.14 expected and revenue of $269.88 million; revenue rose 127.5% year over year.

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 5.6% on Friday. The stock traded as low as $47.28 and last traded at $49.89. 10,615,012 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 10,688,742 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on AAOI. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Applied Optoelectronics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. B. Riley Financial reduced their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $92.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Finally, Northland Securities upgraded Applied Optoelectronics from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.60.

Applied Optoelectronics Trading Down 5.6%

The business's 50 day moving average is $88.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -116.02 and a beta of 4.04.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $269.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $268.11 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 4.39% and a negative return on equity of 0.17%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 127.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.09) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In related news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.87, for a total transaction of $411,480.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 363,168 shares in the company, valued at $37,359,092.16. This trade represents a 1.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Hung-Lun Chang sold 32,172 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total value of $3,545,676.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 249,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,472,707.96. The trade was a 11.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 52,172 shares of company stock valued at $5,985,036. Company insiders own 3.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Polaris Financial Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. EFG International AG acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth about $44,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth about $48,000. 61.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Applied Optoelectronics Company Profile

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. designs and manufactures fiber-optic networking products used to transmit data over cable, telecommunications and data center networks. Its offerings include optical transceivers and other optical components and equipment. The company serves customers in markets including broadband access, telecommunications and data centers. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, Applied Optoelectronics has operations in the United States and Asia and serves customers internationally.

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