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

Posted by Stanley Muller on Sep 14th, 2026

Shares of Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAOI – Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $105.36, but opened at $96.77. Applied Optoelectronics shares last traded at $98.6770, with a volume of 1,814,360 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AAOI. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Applied Optoelectronics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of Applied Optoelectronics from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. B. Riley Financial restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Applied Optoelectronics in a report on Friday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.40.

View Our Latest Report on Applied Optoelectronics

Applied Optoelectronics Stock Down 7.4%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $114.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $131.91. 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 market capitalization of $8.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -124.91 and a beta of 3.79.

Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.04. Applied Optoelectronics had a negative return on equity of 1.98% and a negative net margin of 9.57%.The firm had revenue of $191.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.48 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.16) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 86.3% on a year-over-year basis. Applied Optoelectronics has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.110-0.260 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Shu-Hua Yeh sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.89, for a total value of $1,031,340.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 394,207 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,760,241.23. This represents a 1.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Stefan J. Murry sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.33, for a total transaction of $421,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 367,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,673,805.44. This represents a 1.08% 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 have sold a total of 98,501 shares of company stock valued at $14,003,877 over the last 90 days. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Applied Optoelectronics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Applied Optoelectronics by 1,923.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 769 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares during the period. Comerica Bank bought a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Applied Optoelectronics by 166.7% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Applied Optoelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Applied Optoelectronics in the second quarter valued at about $47,000. 61.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Applied Optoelectronics

(Get Free Report)

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.