Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Stock Price Down 2.1% Following Insider Selling

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) shares fell 2.1% on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $91.75 and last traded at $94.38. 3,385,007 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 10,452,272 shares. The stock had previously closed at $96.38.

Specifically, insider John F. Mccool sold 17,433 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.14, for a total transaction of $1,623,709.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,623,709.62. This trade represents a 50.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 138,351 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.88, for a total transaction of $12,988,391.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,697,137.08. This represents a 59.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ANET. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Arista Networks from $102.50 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Arista Networks from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $108.00 price objective (up previously from $106.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $113.79.

Arista Networks Trading Up 1.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $117.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.94, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.09. The stock's 50-day moving average is $111.80 and its 200-day moving average is $102.19.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. Arista Networks had a net margin of 40.72% and a return on equity of 29.91%. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arista Networks

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Arista Networks by 304.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 96,084,951 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $10,620,270,000 after buying an additional 72,311,318 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in Arista Networks by 330.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 57,648,129 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $6,371,848,000 after acquiring an additional 44,269,572 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 277.5% during the fourth quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 27,288,583 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,016,207,000 after acquiring an additional 20,059,303 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 311.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,165,355 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,665,829,000 after purchasing an additional 18,293,874 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 218.5% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 21,070,016 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,328,869,000 after purchasing an additional 14,454,822 shares during the last quarter. 82.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arista Networks Company Profile

Arista Networks, Inc engages in the development, marketing, and sale of data-driven, client to cloud networking solutions for data center, campus, and routing environments in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. Its cloud networking solutions consist of Extensible Operating System (EOS), a publish-subscribe state-sharing networking operating system offered in combination with a set of network applications.