Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 12,290 Shares of Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors cut its Ciena stake by 33.1% in the first quarter, selling 12,290 shares and retaining 24,890 shares valued at $9.66 million. Institutional investors collectively own 91.99% of Ciena.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with Ciena receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $530.56; several firms recently raised their targets as high as $720.
• Ciena exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.64 in EPS and $1.57 billion in revenue, with revenue up 39.5% year over year. However, insiders have sold 21,627 shares worth about $10.5 million over the past 90 days.

Pacer Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 33.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,890 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 12,290 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Ciena were worth $9,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Asset Dedication LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 2,100.0% during the first quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 88 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Ciena by 635.7% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ciena by 71.0% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ciena in the first quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in Ciena by 85.5% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 141 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CIEN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, May 1st. They set a "neutral" rating and a $416.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Ciena from $425.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Ciena from $350.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Ciena from $405.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ciena has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $530.56.

Ciena Stock Performance

Ciena stock opened at $411.04 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $449.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $417.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.73. The stock has a market cap of $58.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 137.01 and a beta of 1.30. Ciena Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $84.41 and a fifty-two week high of $637.51.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Ciena had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ciena

In other news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.81, for a total value of $1,121,199.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 248,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $94,565,853.42. This represents a 1.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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 shares were sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total value of $1,225,639.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 62,382 shares in the company, valued at $29,082,488.40. This trade 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 21,627 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,776. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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