The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Trims Stake in Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its Ciena stake by 20.6% in the first quarter, selling 19,701 shares and retaining 75,998 shares valued at about $29.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 91.99% of Ciena.
• Ciena exceeded quarterly expectations with earnings of $1.64 per share versus the $1.46 consensus and revenue of $1.57 billion, up 39.5% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $530.56; however, company insiders sold 18,675 shares worth approximately $9.4 million during the last quarter.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its holdings in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN - Free Report) by 20.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,998 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 19,701 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.05% of Ciena worth $29,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Ciena by 3.4% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 103,914 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $40,343,000 after purchasing an additional 3,429 shares during the last quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. bought a new stake in Ciena during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,956,000. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC purchased a new position in Ciena in the 1st quarter worth approximately $311,000. Sona Asset Management US LLC purchased a new position in Ciena in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,553,000. Finally, Gateway Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ciena in the 1st quarter worth $443,000. Institutional investors own 91.99% of the company's stock.

Ciena Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of CIEN stock opened at $377.33 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $457.45 and a 200 day moving average of $413.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 2.11. Ciena Corporation has a 1-year low of $84.41 and a 1-year high of $637.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.41 billion, a PE ratio of 125.78 and a beta of 1.27.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.18. Ciena had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 7.87%.The business had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CIEN shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ciena from $372.00 to $607.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Ciena in a research note on Friday, May 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $416.00 target price on the stock. B. Riley Financial raised their price target on Ciena from $283.00 to $531.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Ciena in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $615.00 price target on Ciena in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $530.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ciena news, SVP Brodie Gage sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.10, for a total transaction of $559,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 42,741 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,921,580.10. This represents a 2.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 2,629 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total transaction of $1,225,639.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 62,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,082,488.40. This trade represents a 4.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 18,675 shares of company stock valued at $9,387,576 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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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