Ciena Corporation $CIEN Shares Sold by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Key Points

• AllianceBernstein L.P. has reduced its stake in Ciena Corporation by 2.7%, selling 11,816 shares and maintaining ownership of 431,517 shares valued at approximately $26 million.
• Several hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Ciena, with National Bank of Canada FI increasing its stake by 15.4%, while Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings by 50% during the first quarter.
• Ciena has seen recent analyst upgrades, with price targets raised significantly, including a jump from $78 to $120 by UBS Group, reflecting growing optimism about the company's prospects.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its stake in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 431,517 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 11,816 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 0.30% of Ciena worth $26,077,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ciena by 50.0% in the 1st 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. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of 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 during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Ciena by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 640 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its position in shares of Ciena by 9,162.5% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 741 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 733 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Ciena Stock Performance

NYSE CIEN traded down $1.35 on Friday, hitting $131.15. The stock had a trading volume of 2,778,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,736,332. The company's 50-day moving average is $93.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.87. The company has a quick ratio of 2.52, a current ratio of 3.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap 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. Ciena Corporation has a one year low of $49.21 and a one year high of $134.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Northland Securities set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $100.00 to $127.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $70.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $95.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.32.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In other news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 2,044 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 2,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.50, for a total transaction of $187,162.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 84,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,829,056.50. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 39,769 shares of company stock valued at $3,326,705. Insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

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.