JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 206,002 Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) by 90.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,165 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 206,002 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Applied Optoelectronics were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAOI. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 90.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 75,981 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $630,000 after purchasing an additional 36,138 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter worth $1,109,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at about $1,319,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter valued at about $19,019,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the third quarter worth about $353,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James boosted their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $17.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. B. Riley downgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $14.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $27.50 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 price target (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.20.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

Applied Optoelectronics stock opened at $28.07 on Friday. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $44.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.51 and its 200 day moving average is $21.41. The company has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.63 and a beta of 2.39.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,298 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.17, for a total value of $80,820.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 209,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,379,756.27. The trade was a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Hung-Lun (Fred) Chang sold 20,323 shares of the business’s 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 directly owns 195,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,935,610.20. This represents a 9.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 103,067 shares of company stock worth $3,513,238 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Applied Optoelectronics 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.