Trexquant Investment LP Makes New Investment in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI)

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 158,747 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,851,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AAOI. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Applied Optoelectronics by 3,290.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,137 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 5,956 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $229,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. Finally, Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $262,000. 61.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 15.8 %

Applied Optoelectronics stock opened at $10.80 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $538.39 million, a P/E ratio of -5.24 and a beta of 2.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.61. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.70 and a fifty-two week high of $44.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.22.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AAOI shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Northland Securities reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective (up from $25.00) on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. 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 restated a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Applied Optoelectronics news, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 2,298 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.17, for a total transaction of $80,820.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 209,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,379,756.27. This represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard B. Black sold 10,000 shares of Applied Optoelectronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $290,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 157,813 shares in the company, valued at $4,576,577. This trade represents a 5.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,298 shares of company stock worth $543,821 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.96% 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.