Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Stock Price Down 2.3% - Here's Why

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 2.3% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $111.65 and last traded at $112.22. 798,879 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 8,719,207 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.86.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Arista Networks from $96.25 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Arista Networks from $100.00 to $106.25 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group increased their price objective on Arista Networks from $92.25 to $106.25 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Arista Networks from $102.50 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.25 target price (up previously from $86.25) on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Friday, November 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $100.70.

Arista Networks Stock Down 1.6 %

The company has a market cap of $142.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.34, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.46.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The technology company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.08. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 40.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Charles H. Giancarlo sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.63, for a total transaction of $765,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 187,784 shares in the company, valued at $17,957,783.92. This represents a 4.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 3,344 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $323,264.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 70,724 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,836,889.08. This represents a 4.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 353,476 shares of company stock valued at $36,841,998. 3.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Advocates Investment Management bought a new position in Arista Networks during the second quarter worth about $265,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Arista Networks by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 310,550 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $108,842,000 after buying an additional 810 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Arista Networks by 2.1% in the second quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,782 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Arista Networks by 2.8% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,815 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,038,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arista Networks during the second quarter valued at $2,753,000. 82.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Arista Networks

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.