Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Sells 12,051 Shares of Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund cut its Ciena stake by 42.7% in the first quarter, selling 12,051 shares and leaving it with 16,166 shares worth about $6.28 million.
• Ciena has several positive business catalysts, including AI-driven 5G network slicing with Telefónica Deutschland, a new 1.6 Tb/s coherent pluggable solution for hyperscale cloud providers, and new Blue Planet automation software.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings, with Q quarterly EPS of $1.64 versus $1.46 expected and revenue of $1.57 billion, while analysts currently have a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a $530.56 average price target.

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund trimmed its position in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 42.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,166 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 12,051 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund's holdings in Ciena were worth $6,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Community Bank N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter worth $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ciena by 71.0% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in Ciena during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Ciena by 45.3% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 154 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its position in Ciena by 635.7% in the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Ciena

Here are the key news stories impacting Ciena this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ciena and Telefónica Deutschland said they are using AI agents to speed up 5G network slicing, highlighting Ciena’s role in helping carriers automate and monetize advanced network services. Ciena and Telefónica Deutschland Use AI Agents to Speed Up 5G Network Slicing
• Positive Sentiment: Ciena unveiled a 1.6 Tb/s coherent pluggable solution aimed at hyperscale cloud providers, a sign the company is expanding its data-center and high-bandwidth connectivity portfolio. Ciena Unveils 1.6 Tb/s Coherent Pluggable Solution for Hyperscale Cloud Providers' Capacity Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Blue Planet introduced Configuration and Change Management, which supports Ciena’s software-led automation strategy and could strengthen its enterprise and service-provider offerings. Ciena Corporation (CIEN)’s Blue Planet Division Introduced Blue Planet Configuration and Change Management
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks roundup highlighted CIEN as one of several liquid, efficient stocks with growth potential, reinforcing a generally constructive view but without new company-specific catalysts. Bet on 4 Top-Performing Liquid Stocks to Maximize Portfolio Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage on how Ciena is scaling its data-center connectivity portfolio adds visibility to its growth strategy, though it does not appear to be a direct earnings or guidance update. How is Ciena Scaling Its Data Center Connectivity Portfolio?
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider sale headlines from Jason Phipps and CEO Gary Smith may create some caution, although the reported share sales were relatively small and are not necessarily a bearish signal on fundamentals. Jason Phipps Sells 2,629 Shares of Ciena NYSE: CIEN Stock Gary Smith Sells 2,952 Shares of Ciena NYSE: CIEN Stock

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CIEN. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on Ciena in a report on Friday, May 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $416.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered Ciena from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Ciena from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Ciena from $405.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $530.56.

Ciena Trading Up 4.6%

NYSE:CIEN opened at $461.13 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 153.71 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Ciena Corporation has a 12 month low of $76.89 and a 12 month high of $637.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $508.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $397.18.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Ciena had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 7.87%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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 company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $19,992,499.76. This represents a 3.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 2,629 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total value of $1,225,639.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 62,382 shares in the company, valued at $29,082,488.40. This represents a 4.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 22,827 shares of company stock valued at $11,541,133. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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