Trexquant Investment LP Takes Position in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 158,747 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,851,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned 0.34% of Applied Optoelectronics at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AAOI. Corebridge Financial Inc. raised its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 20,253 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $747,000 after acquiring an additional 471 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,667 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,246 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 603 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 25,529 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $941,000 after buying an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.72% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.06, for a total transaction of $46,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 196,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,533,157.86. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total transaction of $290,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 157,813 shares in the company, valued at $4,576,577. The trade was a 5.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,298 shares of company stock valued at $543,821 over the last quarter. 4.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Applied Optoelectronics Trading Down 15.8 %

Shares of AAOI stock opened at $10.80 on Friday. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a twelve month low of $6.70 and a twelve month high of $44.50. The stock has a market cap of $538.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.24 and a beta of 2.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $22.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $100.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.92 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative net margin of 38.61% and a negative return on equity of 22.36%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James raised their target price on Applied Optoelectronics to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. B. Riley upgraded Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Northland Securities reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.80.

About Applied Optoelectronics

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.