Citigroup Inc. Boosts Holdings in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) by 4.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 345,612 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 16,017 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned approximately 0.85% of Applied Optoelectronics worth $4,946,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AAOI. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,954,498 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,089,000 after purchasing an additional 442,277 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 47.7% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,596,545 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $22,847,000 after purchasing an additional 515,489 shares during the last quarter. Shellback Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $8,617,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 616,701 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,113,000 after purchasing an additional 24,259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 51.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 541,787 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,491,000 after purchasing an additional 183,260 shares in the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard B. Black sold 8,162 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.18, for a total value of $303,463.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.02, for a total value of $150,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 132,921 shares in the company, valued at $1,996,473.42. The trade was a 7.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,979 shares of company stock valued at $1,990,637 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

NASDAQ AAOI opened at $40.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.78 and a beta of 1.96. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.61. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.70 and a fifty-two week high of $43.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AAOI shares. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $20.00 to $27.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. B. Riley cut their target price on Applied Optoelectronics from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Northland Securities boosted their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.70.

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.