Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Boosts Position in Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET)

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its shares in Arista Networks by 9.6%, owning a total of 262,414 shares valued at approximately $20.5 million as of the last reporting period.
• Several hedge funds substantially increased their positions in Arista Networks, with HighMark Wealth Management raising its stake by 179.7% in Q1 and Quarry LP boosting its holdings by 381.5% in Q4.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a positive outlook on Arista Networks, with an average target price of $111.40 and a majority rating of "Moderate Buy", despite some firms adjusting their price targets lower.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its position in Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET - Free Report) by 9.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 262,414 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,907 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Arista Networks were worth $20,453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. HighMark Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Arista Networks by 179.7% during the first quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 358 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 381.5% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 260 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Arista Networks by 415.7% during the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 263 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arista Networks during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in Arista Networks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.47% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ANET. Barclays lowered their price target on Arista Networks from $126.00 to $119.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Arista Networks from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Arista Networks from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.40.

Insider Activity at Arista Networks

In other Arista Networks news, Director Charles H. Giancarlo sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.36, for a total transaction of $794,880.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 65,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,536,298.24. This trade represents a 10.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kenneth Duda sold 80,000 shares of Arista Networks stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.07, for a total value of $7,205,600.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 12,976 shares in the company, valued at $1,168,748.32. This trade represents a 86.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,177,878 shares of company stock valued at $119,281,861 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.39% of the company's stock.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

ANET opened at $114.37 on Friday. Arista Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $59.43 and a one year high of $133.57. The company has a market cap of $143.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.41, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.40. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $98.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.94.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.06. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 40.72%. The firm had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 27.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arista Networks announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 6th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to buy up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Arista Networks Profile

Arista Networks, Inc engages in the development, marketing, and sale of data-driven, client to cloud networking solutions for data center, campus, and routing environments in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. Its cloud networking solutions consist of Extensible Operating System (EOS), a publish-subscribe state-sharing networking operating system offered in combination with a set of network applications.

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