B. Riley Upgrades Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) to “Neutral”

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) was upgraded by analysts at B. Riley from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $13.00 price objective on the semiconductor company’s stock. B. Riley’s target price suggests a potential downside of 17.83% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Northland Securities reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Raymond James increased their target price on Applied Optoelectronics to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Applied Optoelectronics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.40.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

AAOI opened at $15.82 on Friday. Applied Optoelectronics has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $44.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.61. The company has a market cap of $785.48 million, a PE ratio of -7.68 and a beta of 2.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.13 and a 200-day moving average of $24.43.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $100.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.92 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 22.36% and a negative net margin of 38.61%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Applied Optoelectronics

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.72, for a total value of $126,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 212,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,728,731.88. This trade represents a 1.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.27, for a total value of $352,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 167,813 shares in the company, valued at $5,918,764.51. This represents a 5.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,298 shares of company stock worth $850,401. Insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAOI. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 858.2% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,284 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $63,000. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter worth $82,000. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 5,956 shares during the last quarter. 61.72% of the stock is currently 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.