Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest in Ciena fell by 21.5% in April to 4,693,751 shares (about 3.3% of shares short), with a short-interest ratio of roughly 1.6 days.
• Multiple analysts lifted price targets, leaving Ciena with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $355.59 (notable targets range up to $550 from JPMorgan).
• Ciena reported stronger-than-expected results (EPS $1.35 vs. $1.17 est., revenue $1.43B vs. $1.40B, revenue +33.1% YoY) and the stock recently jumped 7.5% to $510.83, trading at a high valuation (P/E ~325).

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,693,751 shares, a decline of 21.5% from the March 31st total of 5,977,920 shares. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,961,166 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on shares of Ciena from $222.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ciena from $230.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Ciena from $286.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ciena from $280.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ciena from $380.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ciena currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $355.59.

Ciena Trading Up 7.5%

NYSE CIEN traded up $35.44 on Thursday, reaching $510.83. The stock had a trading volume of 815,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,210,572. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 325.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Ciena has a 12-month low of $69.06 and a 12-month high of $527.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $410.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $287.77.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. Ciena had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 4.47%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ciena will post 5.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ciena

In other news, SVP Jason Phipps sold 22,014 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.80, for a total transaction of $9,021,337.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 68 shares in the company, valued at $27,866.40. The trade was a 99.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.53, for a total transaction of $1,061,332.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 293,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,372,490.52. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 42,974 shares of company stock worth $16,615,505 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ciena

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 635.7% during the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 71.0% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its position in shares of Ciena by 85.5% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 141 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ciena during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 154 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

About Ciena

Ciena Corporation NYSE: CIEN is a global supplier of telecommunications networking equipment, software and services. The company develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms that enable service providers, cloud operators and large enterprises to build, manage and scale their networks. Ciena's product portfolio includes coherent optical solutions, packet networking platforms and a suite of network automation software designed to optimize bandwidth, reduce latency and simplify network operations.

In addition to hardware offerings, Ciena provides professional services and support, including network design, implementation and ongoing maintenance.

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