6,480 Ciena Corporation $CIEN Shares Bought by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems increased its Ciena stake by 27.3% in the third quarter, buying 6,480 shares and bringing its holdings to 30,220 shares valued at approximately $10.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 91.99% of Ciena.
• Ciena reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.11 versus the $1.73 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.67 billion, up 37% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with the stock carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $485.93, despite shares opening at $320.16 and trading well below their 52-week high.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its position in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,220 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,480 shares during the quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al's holdings in Ciena were worth $10,632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Markowski Investments bought a new stake in Ciena during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Asset Dedication LLC grew its stake in Ciena by 2,100.0% in the first quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 88 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Ciena by 57.8% in the second quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 635.7% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ciena during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Ciena Stock Performance

CIEN opened at $320.16 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $363.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $401.95. The company has a market capitalization of $45.40 billion, a PE ratio of 71.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.28. Ciena Corporation has a 1 year low of $168.22 and a 1 year high of $637.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 3.80 and a quick ratio of 3.17.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.38. Ciena had a return on equity of 25.33% and a net margin of 10.87%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 37.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 6.00 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In related news, EVP Jason Phipps sold 2,629 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.19, for a total transaction of $933,794.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 57,388 shares in the company, valued at $20,383,643.72. This represents a 4.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Brodie Gage sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.08, for a total transaction of $412,896.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 34,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,723,837.84. The trade was a 3.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 36,014 shares of company stock worth $13,457,571 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CIEN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ciena from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Ciena in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $440.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Ciena from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 target price (down from $660.00) on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $485.93.

Ciena Profile

Ciena Corporation NYSE: CIEN is a networking technology company that provides hardware, software, and services for communications networks. Its solutions help telecommunications carriers, cloud providers, enterprises, government organizations, and research institutions build, manage, and automate high-capacity networks.

The company's portfolio includes optical networking systems, routing and switching platforms, network automation software, and network management tools. Ciena also offers consulting, implementation, maintenance, and professional services designed to support network planning, deployment, optimization, and ongoing operations.

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