Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Short Interest Down 11.9% in December

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,420,000 shares, a drop of 11.9% from the December 15th total of 9,560,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,670,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on AAOI. B. Riley cut shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Rosenblatt Securities raised 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 raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Northland Securities restated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price target (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two investment 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 target price of $29.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Optoelectronics

In related news, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.35, for a total value of $616,803.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 195,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. This trade represents a 9.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider David C. Kuo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.93, for a total transaction of $269,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 118,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,181,025.46. The trade was a 7.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 86,769 shares of company stock valued at $3,015,537. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $956,000. Rhumbline Advisers purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $449,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 616,701 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,113,000 after buying an additional 24,259 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter worth $194,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 51.1% during 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 during the period. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AAOI opened at $30.88 on Friday. Applied Optoelectronics has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $44.50. The stock has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.99 and a beta of 2.39. The business has a fifty day moving average of $34.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

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.