Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $75.57, but opened at $80.00. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $76.0240, with a volume of 2,458,802 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAOI has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $178.00 price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings cut Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. B. Riley Financial cut their price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $109.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $147.00.

Applied Optoelectronics Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $6.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -99.66 and a beta of 3.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a current ratio of 2.78. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $133.24.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.16) EPS. The company’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, equities analysts forecast that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, insider Hung-Lun Chang sold 32,172 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.21, for a total transaction of $3,545,676.12. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 249,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,472,707.96. The trade was a 11.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Shu-Hua Yeh sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $720,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 371,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,590,904.94. This represents a 1.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 58,172 shares of company stock valued at $6,735,709 in the last ninety days. 3.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SteelPeak Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $578,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 47.8% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,925 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $191,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 50.3% in the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 5,835 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 1,954 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 2,785.6% during the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 5,800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $623,000 after buying an additional 5,599 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. bought a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 3rd quarter worth $632,000. Institutional investors own 61.70% of the company’s stock.

About Applied Optoelectronics

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc (NASDAQ: AAOI) develops and manufactures fiber-optic networking products and solutions. Its offerings include optical transceivers, transmitters, receivers, lasers, and related components used to transmit data across fiber-optic networks.

The company serves several communications markets, including data centers, broadband access networks, cable television, and telecommunications. Its products are designed for applications such as high-speed data transmission, fiber-to-the-home and other broadband deployments, network connectivity, and communications infrastructure.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, Applied Optoelectronics supports customers in multiple regions, including North America, Asia, and other international markets.