Quantitative Investment Management LLC Buys New Stake in Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC has acquired a new stake in Ciena Corporation, purchasing 22,797 shares valued at approximately $1.38 million.
• Despite missing earnings expectations with an EPS of $0.42 compared to the consensus estimate of $0.50, Ciena reported revenue growth of 23.6% year-over-year.
• Analysts have mixed reviews on Ciena, with target prices ranging from $90 to $105, reflecting a generally positive outlook on the stock.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 22,797 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,377,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ciena during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ciena by 50.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 534 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its position in shares of Ciena by 34.7% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 636 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of Ciena by 66.7% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 640 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its position in shares of Ciena by 9,162.5% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 741 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ciena Stock Performance

Shares of CIEN opened at $89.7620 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $85.05 and a 200-day moving average of $76.55. Ciena Corporation has a one year low of $49.21 and a one year high of $101.44. The company has a market cap of $12.69 billion, a PE ratio of 124.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 3.40 and a quick ratio of 2.57.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Ciena had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 5.08%. The business's revenue was up 23.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.27 EPS. Ciena has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In related news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 2,044 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.64, for a total transaction of $166,872.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 47,198 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,853,244.72. The trade was a 4.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Brodie Gage sold 350 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.94, for a total transaction of $31,829.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,268 shares in the company, valued at $3,934,791.92. This trade represents a 0.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 32,969 shares of company stock valued at $2,694,781. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CIEN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Northland Securities set a $100.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a report on Monday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Ciena from $83.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, June 6th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $90.00 price objective (up from $89.00) on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ciena from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.54.

Ciena Profile

Ciena Corporation provides hardware and software services for delivery of video, data, and voice traffic metro, aggregation, and access communications network worldwide. The company's Networking Platforms segment offers convergence of coherent optical transport, open optical networking, optical transport network switching, IP routing, and switching services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CIEN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.