NEW YORK, January 2, 2026, 12:45 ET — Regular session
- Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) rose about 13% to $39.55 in midday trading, after a prior close of $34.86.
- Short interest stands near 12.7 million shares — roughly one-fifth of the tradable float — keeping “short squeeze” risk in play. MarketBeat
- Investors are watching for the next earnings update (estimated Feb. 25) and the next FINRA short-interest publication (Jan. 12).
Applied Optoelectronics Inc shares rose about 13% on Friday, trading at $39.55 after touching $39.58 earlier in the session. The Nasdaq-listed stock last closed at $34.86.
The outsized move matters because AAOI has become a high-beta proxy for demand for faster optical links inside AI data centers and cable networks. Beta — a measure of how much a stock tends to move versus the overall market — sits at 3.25 on Finviz’s data.
Short interest, or borrowed shares sold by investors betting the price will fall, remains elevated. About 12.7 million shares were sold short as of Dec. 15, roughly one-fifth of the stock’s free float — shares available for trading — according to MarketBeat and Finviz.
High short interest can amplify rallies when short sellers buy back stock to close positions, a dynamic known as a short squeeze.
Other optical and networking names climbed alongside AAOI, with Lumentum, Coherent and Ciena up around 3% to 4%.
U.S. stocks were mixed in the first trading day of 2026, with semiconductor strength helping the Nasdaq hold near flat, Reuters reported.
Applied Optoelectronics last reported quarterly results on Nov. 6, when it posted revenue of $118.6 million, including $70.6 million from CATV products and $43.9 million from data-center gear. CATV refers to cable-television equipment, while HFC is “hybrid fiber‑coax,” a common cable‑broadband architecture. GlobeNewswire
For the December quarter, the company forecast revenue of $125 million to $140 million and a non‑GAAP gross margin of 29% to 31%. Non‑GAAP results strip out certain costs such as stock-based compensation; the company also guided to a non‑GAAP loss of 4 to 13 cents a share.
CEO Thompson Lin said in that Nov. 6 release the company was “nearing what we believe are the final stages of 800G product qualification with several customers.” 800G stands for 800 gigabits per second, a high-speed standard used in data-center optical transceivers. GlobeNewswire
In December, Applied Optoelectronics said it had received its first volume order for 800G data-center transceivers from a major hyperscale customer and expected the order to contribute $4 million to $8 million to fourth-quarter revenue. Investors are waiting to see how much of that demand shows up in data-center revenue when the company reports results.
Analysts remain split on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities raised its price target to $50 in mid-December while keeping a buy rating, while B. Riley reiterated a sell rating with a $15 target, according to Investing.com and MarketBeat compilations.
MarketBeat estimates Applied Optoelectronics will report next around Feb. 25 after the close, though the company has not confirmed a date. Traders are also watching for the next short-interest update; FINRA’s schedule shows the report for the Dec. 31 settlement date is due for publication on Jan. 12.
