Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Ciena Corporation's stock reached a new 52-week high of $122.27 on Wednesday, closing at $122.12, with notable trading volume of over 2 million shares.
• Analysts have raised their target prices significantly, with Bank of America increasing its target from $95.00 to $135.00, while Ciena's overall consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" and the average target price is $114.32.
• Ciena's CEO, Gary B. Smith, sold 6,800 shares for approximately $631,924, indicating a 2.18% decrease in his ownership position.

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $122.27 and last traded at $122.12, with a volume of 2131474 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.00.

CIEN has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ciena from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Ciena from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Ciena from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ciena from $78.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Ciena to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.32.

Insider Transactions at Ciena

In other Ciena news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 6,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.23, for a total value of $559,164.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 325,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,770,552.11. This represents a 2.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 2,325 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.50, for a total value of $187,162.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 84,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,829,056.50. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 39,769 shares of company stock valued at $3,326,705. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ciena by 2.9% during the second quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,693 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $382,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Ciena by 15.4% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,147 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its position in Ciena by 34.7% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 636 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Ciena by 50.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 534 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Ciena by 0.5% during the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 38,910 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $2,351,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ciena Stock Down 1.0%

The company has a market capitalization of $18.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 135.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 3.28 and a quick ratio of 2.52. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $93.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.87.

Ciena Company Profile

Ciena Corporation provides hardware and software services for delivery of video, data, and voice traffic metro, aggregation, and access communications network worldwide. The company's Networking Platforms segment offers convergence of coherent optical transport, open optical networking, optical transport network switching, IP routing, and switching services.