Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Cut to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Ciena to “Hold” from “Buy,” though broader analyst sentiment remains positive with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $506.11.
• Ciena shares opened at $331.73, down 7.0%, and remained below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The stock trades at a high valuation, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.05.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, including $2.11 in earnings per share and $1.67 billion in revenue, up 37% year over year; insiders sold $12.0 million of stock during the past quarter.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on CIEN. B. Riley Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Ciena from $516.00 to $413.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $520.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley restated a "positive" rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ciena from $475.00 to $548.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, August 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ciena presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $506.11.

Ciena Trading Down 7.0%

Shares of Ciena stock opened at $331.73 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $376.08 and its 200 day moving average is $440.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.04 billion, a PE ratio of 74.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 1.28. Ciena has a 1 year low of $159.56 and a 1 year high of $637.51. The company has a current ratio of 3.80, a quick ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $2.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.38. Ciena had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 25.33%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 37.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Ciena will post 6.00 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In related news, CFO Marc D. Graff sold 97 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.19, for a total transaction of $34,453.43. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 107,136 shares in the company, valued at $38,053,635.84. The trade was a 0.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total transaction of $568,612.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,186,636.40. This represents a 3.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,862 shares of company stock worth $12,017,320. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ciena

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Ciena during the 2nd quarter worth about $404,948,000. Swiss National Bank raised its stake in Ciena by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 413,332 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $160,468,000 after buying an additional 26,900 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in Ciena by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 321,825 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $124,942,000 after buying an additional 31,098 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Ciena by 24.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 266,384 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $93,719,000 after acquiring an additional 52,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Ciena by 309.8% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 223,203 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $86,509,000 after acquiring an additional 168,736 shares in the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Ciena

Ciena Corporation is a networking technology company that provides communications infrastructure, software and services for telecommunications providers, cloud operators, enterprises, governments and research institutions. Its solutions are designed to help organizations build, manage and automate high-capacity networks that support applications such as cloud computing, broadband connectivity, data center interconnection and 5G services.

The company's portfolio includes optical networking systems and coherent optical technologies, routing and switching platforms, broadband access solutions, network management software and professional services.

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