Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Ciena from “hold” to “buy,” while broader analyst coverage rates the stock “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $485.93.
• Ciena recently exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.11 in earnings per share versus a $1.73 consensus estimate and $1.67 billion in revenue, up 37% year over year.
• The stock opened at $320.37, down 0.7%, well below its 52-week high of $637.51. Insiders sold 36,014 shares worth about $13.5 million over the past three months, while institutional investors own nearly 92% of the company.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. B. Riley Financial lowered their target price on shares of Ciena from $516.00 to $413.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 31st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ciena from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Ciena in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $440.00 price target on the stock. CL King set a $347.00 price target on Ciena in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $485.93.

Ciena Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE CIEN opened at $320.37 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $45.43 billion, a PE ratio of 71.51, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $368.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $437.64. Ciena has a 52-week low of $168.22 and a 52-week high of $637.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 3.17 and a current ratio of 3.80.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Ciena

In other news, Director Bruce Claflin sold 2,857 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.91, for a total value of $1,016,834.87. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,946,578.89. This represents a 25.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Marc D. Graff sold 4,995 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $430.72, for a total value of $2,151,446.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 107,519 shares in the company, valued at $46,310,583.68. This represents a 4.44% decrease in their position. 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 36,014 shares of company stock valued at $13,457,571 in the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ciena by 57.8% in the 2nd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management grew its holdings in Ciena by 15.2% during the 2nd quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 205 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC grew its holdings in Ciena by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 910 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Ciena by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $654,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in Ciena by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 358 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company's stock.

About Ciena

Ciena Corporation NYSE: CIEN is a networking technology company that provides hardware, software, and services for communications networks. Its solutions help telecommunications carriers, cloud providers, enterprises, government organizations, and research institutions build, manage, and automate high-capacity networks.

The company's portfolio includes optical networking systems, routing and switching platforms, network automation software, and network management tools. Ciena also offers consulting, implementation, maintenance, and professional services designed to support network planning, deployment, optimization, and ongoing operations.

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