Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Acquires 50,687 Shares of Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management raised its stake in Ciena by 50,687 shares (a 3,411% increase), bringing its total to 52,173 shares valued at about $12.2 million at quarter-end.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently: CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,993 shares and SVP Brodie Gage sold 5,000 shares, with insiders disposing of 66,150 shares worth $22.09 million over the last 90 days (insiders now own 0.58%).
• Ciena beat Q results (EPS $1.35 vs. $1.17 estimate; revenue $1.43B vs. $1.40B), with revenue up 33.1% YoY, and the stock trades around $467 with a market cap of about $66.1 billion and a one-year high of $513.49.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its holdings in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 3,411.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,173 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 50,687 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Ciena were worth $12,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Community Bank N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ciena by 50.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 200 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ciena by 104.0% during the third quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 204 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,993 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.65, for a total value of $741,216.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 304,892 shares of the company's stock, valued at $75,506,503.80. The trade was a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Brodie Gage sold 5,000 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $405.00, for a total value of $2,025,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 46,341 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,768,105. This represents a 9.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 66,150 shares of company stock valued at $22,091,206 over the last ninety days. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ciena Price Performance

Ciena stock opened at $467.19 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $364.24 and its 200 day moving average is $262.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 2.14. The firm has a market cap of $66.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 297.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.01. Ciena Corporation has a one year low of $56.94 and a one year high of $513.49.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. Ciena had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 4.47%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CIEN has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Ciena in a report on Thursday, March 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $425.00 price target on the stock. B. Riley Financial boosted their price target on Ciena from $222.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Ciena from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Ciena from $280.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $327.12.

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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