Flputnam Investment Management Co. Sells 20,863 Shares of Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Flputnam Investment Management cut its Ciena stake by 41.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 20,863 shares and leaving it with 29,005 shares worth about $6.78 million.
• Ciena reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.35 topping estimates and revenue of $1.43 billion, up 33.1% from a year ago.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on Ciena, with multiple firms raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at “Moderate Buy.”

Flputnam Investment Management Co. trimmed its stake in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 41.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,005 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 20,863 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.'s holdings in Ciena were worth $6,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CIEN. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new position in Ciena in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake 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 last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake 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 last quarter. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ciena by 42.5% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 312 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ciena Stock Performance

Shares of CIEN stock opened at $580.90 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 370.00, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm's 50 day moving average is $492.80 and its 200 day moving average is $337.45. Ciena Corporation has a 12 month low of $70.77 and a 12 month high of $605.61.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ciena from $345.00 to $658.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Ciena to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Ciena from $425.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Evercore set a $330.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $404.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $562.05, for a total transaction of $1,659,171.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 272,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $153,163,683.45. This represents a 1.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 22,014 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.80, for a total transaction of $9,021,337.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 68 shares in the company, valued at $27,866.40. This trade represents a 99.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 44,174 shares of company stock valued at $18,878,661. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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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