Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Down 6.9% – Should You Sell?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)’s stock price traded down 6.9% during trading on Monday. The company traded as low as $94.13 and last traded at $94.4090. Approximately 3,053,934 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 10,230,492 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $178.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Applied Optoelectronics from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $139.40.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $8.12 billion, a P/E ratio of -123.24 and a beta of 3.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 2.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $111.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $132.98.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.04. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 9.57% and a negative return on equity of 1.98%. The company had revenue of $191.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.48 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.16) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 86.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Applied Optoelectronics has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.110-0.260 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post 0.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Applied Optoelectronics

In related news, insider Hung-Lun Chang sold 32,172 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total value of $3,545,676.12. Following the transaction, the insider owned 249,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,472,707.96. This represents a 11.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.33, for a total value of $421,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 367,168 shares in the company, valued at $38,673,805.44. The trade was a 1.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,172 shares of company stock valued at $6,092,409. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAOI. EFG International AG purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $58,000. Finally, Tema ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the second quarter worth $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.70% of the company’s stock.

Applied Optoelectronics Company Profile

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc develops and manufactures fiber-optic networking products and components. Its offerings include optical transceivers, transponders, modules and related equipment used to transmit data over fiber-optic networks.

The company serves several communications markets, including data centers, telecommunications, broadband access and cable television. Its products support applications such as high-speed data transmission, cloud computing, network infrastructure and fiber-based broadband services.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, Applied Optoelectronics serves customers in North America, Asia and other international markets.