Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $35.60.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AAOI. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Applied Optoelectronics from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Northland Securities set a $45.00 price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, B. Riley restated a “sell” rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Monday, November 10th.

Insider Activity at Applied Optoelectronics

In other news, insider David C. Kuo sold 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.15, for a total transaction of $501,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 130,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,257,562.20. The trade was a 8.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.75, for a total transaction of $101,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 283,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,584,021.25. This represents a 1.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 28,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,178,726. Insiders own 4.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Applied Optoelectronics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 497.5% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 962 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the period. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Applied Optoelectronics by 85.9% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,785 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 825 shares during the last quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Applied Optoelectronics during the 4th quarter worth $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.70% of the company’s stock.

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Up 10.2%

AAOI opened at $43.61 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of -13.54 and a beta of 3.26. Applied Optoelectronics has a twelve month low of $9.71 and a twelve month high of $48.31. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $33.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.10) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $118.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.77 million. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 7.34% and a negative net margin of 36.97%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 82.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.21) EPS. Applied Optoelectronics has set its Q4 2025 guidance at -0.130–0.040 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics will post -1.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Applied Optoelectronics News

Here are the key news stories impacting Applied Optoelectronics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: 800G product wins and Texas capacity build — Company announcements and reporting indicate AAOI has secured 800G orders tied to AI/datacenter customers and is scaling manufacturing in Texas to meet that demand; investors are treating this as a structural demand catalyst for higher‑margin, next‑generation optics. Applied Optoelectronics Secures 800G Order And Scales Texas For AI Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/upbeat outlook and buy recommendations — Recent coverage from retail and independent outlets highlighted an upbeat outlook and fresh buy recommendations after the company’s disclosures, supporting momentum as investors re-rate growth prospects tied to AI networking spend. Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) Hits Nearly 8-Year High on Upbeat Outlook, Buy Reco
• Positive Sentiment: Technical breakout narrative — Independent commentary argues AAOI has cleared multi‑year moving averages (50‑ and 200‑week), signaling a structural breakout that attracted momentum buying from traders and some longer‑term investors. Applied Optoelectronics’ Breakout Is Just Beginning
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces explaining the rally — Several market writeups summarized why the stock jumped (800G wins, expansion, upgrade momentum), which amplified retail interest but doesn’t add new corporate fundamentals by itself. Why Applied Optoelectronics, Inc.’s (AAOI) Stock Is Up 17.97%
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed signals on sustainability of the move — Zacks and other analysts note that while revenue upside and product wins are supportive, recent earnings‑estimate revisions and the company’s negative trailing margins mean the rally could be sentiment‑driven and may not yet be reflected in durable EPS improvements. Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights: Applied Optoelectronics,Amazon, Oracle and Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: Profit‑taking and volatility — After the run of gains and an 8‑year high, the stock experienced a sharp pullback on heavy volume as some investors took profits; expect continued intraday swings while the market digests whether 800G orders and capital expansion will translate into margin recovery and sustained earnings. Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) falls 12.5% after 8-year high
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest data uninformative — Recent short‑interest reporting showed anomalous/zero values and doesn’t provide a clear signal on positioning; monitor updated, reliable filings for true short‑squeeze risk. Short interest report (Jan 28)

Applied Optoelectronics Company Profile

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc develops and manufactures high-speed fiber-optic networking products designed to support the growing bandwidth demands of data centers, telecommunications carriers and internet content providers. The company’s core offerings include pluggable optical transceiver modules, transponders and optical components that enable data transmission at rates ranging from 1G to 400G. These products are used to facilitate long-haul, metro and intra-data center connectivity, addressing the need for scalable, low-latency and energy-efficient solutions in modern network infrastructures.

The company’s product portfolio spans small-form factor pluggable modules such as SFP+, QSFP+ and QSFP28 units, as well as more advanced form factors like CFP2 and OSFP for ultra-high-speed applications.