Donoghue Forlines LLC Invests $2.42 Million in Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Donoghue Forlines LLC opened a new position in Ciena during the fourth quarter, buying 10,330 shares valued at about $2.42 million. The stake represents 0.7% of the firm's portfolio and its 25th-largest holding.
• Ciena has seen continued interest from institutional investors, with several funds recently adding or initiating positions. Overall, institutional ownership is very high at 91.99%.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including SVP Jason Phipps and CEO Gary B. Smith, while analysts remain broadly positive. Ciena’s average analyst rating is “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $367.56.

Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new position in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 10,330 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,416,000. Ciena accounts for 0.7% of Donoghue Forlines LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in Ciena in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Ciena by 50.4% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 200 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new position in Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Ciena by 104.0% in the third quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 204 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jason Phipps sold 22,014 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 68 shares in the company, valued at $27,866.40. This trade represents a 99.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $537.74, for a total transaction of $1,587,408.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 275,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,126,398.14. This trade represents a 1.06% 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 42,974 shares of company stock worth $17,418,863 over the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CIEN shares. Barclays boosted their price target on Ciena from $279.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $286.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $375.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, May 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $416.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $367.56.

Ciena Stock Up 2.2%

CIEN opened at $590.44 on Friday. Ciena Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $70.77 and a fifty-two week high of $598.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.14 and a current ratio of 2.81. The company has a fifty day moving average of $450.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $313.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 376.08, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.24.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.18. Ciena had a net margin of 4.47% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Ciena 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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