Ciena Corporation $CIEN Shares Sold by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG reduced its Ciena stake by 32.9% in the first quarter, selling 13,395 shares and ending with 27,275 shares valued at about $10.6 million.
• Ciena reported a strong quarter, with earnings per share of $1.64 and revenue of $1.57 billion, both ahead of analyst expectations and up 39.5% from a year earlier.
• Wall Street remains upbeat on the stock: Ciena has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with an average price target of $530.56, while insiders have also been selling shares in recent months.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG cut its stake in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 32.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,275 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 13,395 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in Ciena were worth $10,588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CIEN. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ciena during the 4th quarter worth $2,747,810,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Ciena by 30,114.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,870,677 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $671,365,000 after buying an additional 2,861,176 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter valued at about $292,310,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Ciena by 53.0% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,051,625 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $947,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,404,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atreides Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ciena during the second quarter worth about $102,705,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on CIEN shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on Ciena in a research note on Friday, May 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $416.00 price target on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Ciena from $350.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Northland Securities set a $450.00 price objective on Ciena in a report on Friday, June 5th. Citigroup upped their target price on Ciena from $345.00 to $658.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Ciena from $425.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ciena presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $530.56.

Ciena Stock Performance

Ciena stock opened at $461.12 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 2.11. Ciena Corporation has a 12 month low of $76.89 and a 12 month high of $637.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $508.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $398.77. The company has a market cap of $65.27 billion, a PE ratio of 153.71 and a beta of 1.27.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.18. Ciena had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.33, for a total value of $739,599.38. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 42,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,992,499.76. This trade represents a 3.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 2,629 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total transaction of $1,225,639.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 62,382 shares in the company, valued at $29,082,488.40. The trade was a 4.04% 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 have sold a total of 22,827 shares of company stock worth $11,541,133 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Ciena Company Profile

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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