Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Ciena has been upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating by Zacks Research, indicating positive sentiment from analysts regarding the company's performance.
• Multiple analysts have raised their price targets for Ciena, with Bank of America increasing it to $135.00 and JPMorgan Chase & Co. to $140.00, reflecting growing confidence in Ciena's growth outlook.
• As of the latest trading session, Ciena's shares have risen by 6.3%, and the company currently has a market cap of $18.33 billion.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also commented on CIEN. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Ciena from $100.00 to $127.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on Ciena from $78.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Bank of America increased their price target on Ciena from $95.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Ciena from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Ciena from $70.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ciena currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.32.

Ciena Trading Up 6.3%

Shares of CIEN opened at $129.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $91.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.14. The company has a market cap of $18.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 133.96, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.16. Ciena has a 52-week low of $49.21 and a 52-week high of $131.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 3.28.

Insider Activity

In other Ciena news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 2,044 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.64, for a total value of $166,872.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 47,198 shares in the company, valued at $3,853,244.72. This trade represents a 4.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 6,800 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.23, for a total transaction of $559,164.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 325,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,770,552.11. The trade was a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 39,769 shares of company stock worth $3,326,705. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ciena

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CIEN. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ciena by 50.0% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 534 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in Ciena by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 636 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 640 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ciena in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its position in Ciena by 9,162.5% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 741 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

About Ciena

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.

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