6,632 Shares in Ciena Corporation $CIEN Acquired by Jackson Square Capital LLC

Key Points

• Jackson Square Capital opened a new position in Ciena in the fourth quarter, buying 6,632 shares valued at about $1.55 million per its latest 13F filing.
• Ciena beat expectations with Q results of $1.35 EPS (vs. $1.17 est.) and revenue of $1.43B (+33.1% YoY), and the stock jumped ~10.2% to trade near a 12‑month high (~$493.56).
• Insiders sold sizable stakes recently—89,697 shares worth ~$27.48M in the last quarter (including CEO and SVP sales executed under 10b5‑1 plans); institutional ownership is ~91.99% while the average analyst target is about $327 (Moderate Buy).

Jackson Square Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,632 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,551,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in Ciena in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Ciena in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Ciena by 50.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 200 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Ciena by 104.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 204 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Ciena in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ciena Stock Up 10.2%

CIEN stock opened at $493.56 on Thursday. Ciena Corporation has a 12-month low of $53.18 and a 12-month high of $499.39. The company has a quick ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $69.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 314.37, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average of $346.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $251.54.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.18. Ciena had a net margin of 4.47% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. The company's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In other Ciena news, SVP Jason Phipps sold 22,014 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.80, for a total value of $9,021,337.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 68 shares in the company, valued at $27,866.40. This represents a 99.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing 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, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.51, for a total transaction of $1,226,585.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 281,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $116,909,971.15. The trade was a 1.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 89,697 shares of company stock worth $27,475,242 in the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on CIEN. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Ciena from $320.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Ciena from $280.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Evercore set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on shares of Ciena from $135.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $327.12.

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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