Which Optics Stock Has Dominated in 2026: Applied Optoelectronics, Lumentum, or Coherent?

Which Optics Stock Has Dominated in 2026: Applied Optoelectronics, Lumentum, or Coherent?

David Moadel

Mon, September 7, 2026 at 4:30 PM GMT+3 6 min read

Quick Read

• AAOI's 203% YTD gain outpaces LITE's 139% rise, fueled by U.S. restrictions on Chinese optical suppliers and surging 800G transceiver demand.

• Despite COHR's $2 billion NVIDIA investment, all three optics stocks crushed SOXX at 73% and SPY at 13%, making this an AI capex sector call.

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AI datacenter capex has turned optical networking into 2026's leadership segment, and the three biggest U.S.-listed optics names have all outrun the broader semiconductor sector. Applied Optoelectronics (NASDAQ:AAOI) stock is up 203% year to date (YTD) through Friday's close at $105.53, the widest gain in the group. Meanwhile, Lumentum Holdings (NASDAQ:LITE) shares are up 139% YTD at $881.26.

Coherent (NYSE:COHR) shares are up 53% YTD at $281.86, still ahead of the sector, though trailing its two peers by a wide margin. For context, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) is up 73% YTD. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) is up 13% YTD, underscoring how much the optics trade has separated from the broad market.

All three companies are riding the same hyperscaler buildout of 800G and 1.6T transceivers. The ranking inside the group tracks how concentrated each name's datacenter exposure is, which also flags where the risk sits if optical demand cools.

Policy Shock and 800G Ramp Fuel AAOI's Lead

Applied Optoelectronics carries the most direct exposure to reported U.S. restrictions on Chinese optical-transceiver suppliers, and that policy shift lifted the entire optics group in a single early-August session. AAOI stock has also benefited from Q2 FY2026 results that confirmed its datacenter transceiver business had turned.

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Revenue at Applied Optoelectronics reached $191.92 million, up 86.4% year over year (YoY), and non-GAAP EPS of $0.06 topped the $0.015 consensus. Its datacenter unit more than doubled to $107.66 million, with 800G volumes more than doubling sequentially. Q3 revenue guidance was set at $255 million to $290 million.

CEO Thompson Lin said the company forecasts "demand will continue to outpace our production capacity through mid-2027." Management at Applied Optoelectronics is targeting capacity of over 930,000 pieces per month of 800G and 1.6T products by year-end. However, a large equity offering in late August interrupted the run, and AAOI stock has slid 18% over the past month even as the YTD gain remains dominant.

Where Lumentum and Coherent Diverge

The rally in Lumentum stock rests on cloud and AI datacenter demand for its highest-speed optical modules and its optical circuit switching (OCS) products. Q4 FY2026 revenue was $1.006 billion, up 109.3% YoY, with non-GAAP gross margin of 50.4%. Additionally, Lumentum guided Q1 FY2027 revenue to a midpoint of $1.25 billion, reaching its target operating model more than a quarter ahead of schedule.

CEO Michael Hurlston said Lumentum is "positioned at the heart of a secular industry shift" as optical links replace copper inside AI clusters. Pump laser shipments at Lumentum climbed more than 80% YoY, and management projects a four-fold increase over the next several quarters.

Coherent trails the pack because its industrial segment dilutes the datacenter exposure that has driven the group this year. Its data center and communications segment did print $1.615 billion in Q4 FY2026 revenue, 79% of the company total and up 59% YoY on a pro forma basis. Yet, industrial revenue was flat, and Coherent stock has cooled from its August peak even as Q1 FY2027 revenue guidance came in at $2.2 billion to $2.4 billion.

Coherent also maintains a partnership with NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on laser and optical networking products, and NVIDIA has invested $2 billion in the company. However, that catalyst is priced against a more mixed underlying revenue mix than Lumentum's cleaner optical exposure. Coherent shares also entered the S&P 500 during the year, which brought passive inflows but didn't close the gap with its two peers.

What to Watch Next

The clear 2026 winner among optics stocks is Applied Optoelectronics, but investors should size their positions to reflect that AAOI stock is also the most exposed if hyperscaler orders slow. Lumentum offers broader product breadth and a cleaner margin story, and Coherent's industrial mix acts as both ballast and drag. All three sit well above the SOXX ETF and far above the SPY ETF, so this trade is a sector call as much as a stock call.

The optics rally is really an AI capex rally, and the sector's leadership among 2026's best-performing groups leans on the pace of hyperscaler orders (we profiled seven suppliers powering that buildout, from power to cooling to networking, in a free report you can grab here). A sustained rotation out of AI infrastructure could hit Applied Optoelectronics first and hardest, while Coherent's diversified mix might provide some cushion at the cost of upside. Lumentum sits in the middle on both dimensions.

Investors can watch for updates on 1.6T transceiver shipment cadence across all three names, since supply-chain constraints in components could reshape the ranking into 2027. A pullback in AI capex from a top hyperscaler could compress the multiples fastest at Applied Optoelectronics, given its concentration. Position sizing in the group should reflect that concentration risk alongside the upside case.

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