Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Northland Securities

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by analysts at Northland Securities in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $40.00 target price on the semiconductor company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $25.00. Northland Securities’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 23.49% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on AAOI. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, B. Riley lowered shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.00.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

AAOI stock opened at $32.39 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of -15.72 and a beta of 2.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.45. Applied Optoelectronics has a fifty-two week low of $6.70 and a fifty-two week high of $44.50.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total value of $616,803.05. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 195,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. The trade was a 9.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total transaction of $150,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 132,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,996,473.42. This represents a 7.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 96,769 shares of company stock valued at $3,165,737 over the last three months. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at about $82,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 272.1% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,281 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 6,787 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $89,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at $186,000. 61.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.