Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Stock Price Down 1.8% on Insider Selling

Shares of Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) fell 1.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $135.37 and last traded at $136.9730. 5,251,586 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 41% from the average session volume of 8,956,058 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.54.

Specifically, insider Kenneth Duda sold 26,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.35, for a total value of $3,701,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 512,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,940,140. This trade represents a 4.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kenneth Duda sold 32,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.44, for a total transaction of $4,558,080.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 12,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,848,301.44. The trade was a 71.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ANET shares. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $184.00 target price (up from $183.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $177.00 price objective on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities increased their price target on Arista Networks from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Arista Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.44.

Key Headlines Impacting Arista Networks

Here are the key news stories impacting Arista Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst write-ups highlight Arista’s software-led differentiation — Zacks notes Arista’s EOS and CloudVision give it an “AI‑ready,” automated networking edge for enterprises and hyperscalers, supporting durable revenue and margin expansion. This underpins growth expectations and helps justify a premium multiple. Can Arista’s High-Performance Network Software Fuel Its Future Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent fundamental results remain supportive: Arista’s Feb. 12 quarter beat on EPS and revenue with high margins and ~29% YoY revenue growth, which helps justify analyst upside and a high P/E relative to peers. (Background earnings release)
• Positive Sentiment: Sector-performance pieces show ANET has outperformed many computer & technology peers so far this year, reinforcing momentum and attracting momentum/sector rotation flows. Is Arista Networks (ANET) Stock Outpacing Its Computer and Technology Peers This Year?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts’ views are mixed — The Globe and Mail roundup notes differing analyst opinions across Arista and other tech names, indicating no clear consensus on near-term upside vs. valuation risk. Mixed analyst commentary can increase intraday volatility but doesn’t decisively move fundamentals. Analysts’ Opinions Are Mixed on These Technology Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparative pieces (e.g., sector/company comparisons) provide context but are unlikely to drive large moves unless they change earning forecasts or market share assumptions. Comparing Consensus Cloud Solutions & Arista Networks
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: SEC filings show Kenneth Duda disclosed sizable sales (reported on Feb. 17), totaling tens of thousands of shares at ~\$142 per share. Large insider disposals can spook investors and add downward pressure even when management says sales are for personal reasons. SEC Form 4 — Insider Sale

Arista Networks Trading Down 3.3%

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $133.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $137.50. The company has a market cap of $166.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.42.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The technology company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.38 billion. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 30.37% and a net margin of 38.99%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arista Networks

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Global Trust Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Arista Networks by 33.0% during the 3rd quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 19,273 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,808,000 after buying an additional 4,780 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Arista Networks in the third quarter worth about $8,263,000. National Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arista Networks during the third quarter worth about $1,296,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 1.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 98,993,100 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $10,127,984,000 after acquiring an additional 1,136,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Arista Networks during the second quarter valued at about $247,451,000. 82.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arista Networks Company Profile

Arista Networks, Inc is a technology company that designs and sells cloud networking solutions for large-scale data centers and enterprise environments. The company is best known for its high-performance switching and routing platforms, which are used to build scalable, low-latency networks for cloud service providers, internet companies, financial services, telecommunications, and enterprise IT. Arista’s offerings emphasize programmability, automation and telemetry to support modern, software-driven network architectures.

Central to Arista’s product portfolio is its Extensible Operating System (EOS), a modular network operating system that provides consistent programmability, stateful control and advanced visibility across the company’s hardware platforms.