Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein

Equities researchers at Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage set an “outperform” rating and a $440.00 price target on the communications equipment provider’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price target points to a potential upside of 23.99% from the stock’s current price.

CIEN has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Ciena from $508.00 to $394.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Evercore upgraded Ciena from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Barclays increased their price target on Ciena from $475.00 to $548.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, September 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.05.

Ciena Stock Up 3.1%

CIEN opened at $354.86 on Wednesday. Ciena has a fifty-two week low of $143.19 and a fifty-two week high of $637.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 3.17 and a current ratio of 3.80. The company has a market capitalization of $50.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.21, a P/E/G ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $374.00 and a 200-day moving average of $440.05.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $2.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.38. Ciena had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 25.33%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. Ciena’s revenue was up 37.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Ciena will post 6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ciena

In related news, EVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.52, for a total value of $568,612.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,186,636.40. This trade represents a 3.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Thomas Nevens sold 3,738 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.04, for a total value of $1,342,091.52. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,258,002.56. The trade was a 37.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,184 shares of company stock worth $9,957,835. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ciena

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Markowski Investments acquired a new stake in Ciena in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ciena by 57.8% during the second quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ciena by 2,100.0% in the 1st quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 88 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ciena by 635.7% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ciena Company Profile

Ciena Corporation is a networking technology company that provides communications infrastructure, software and services for telecommunications providers, cloud operators, enterprises, governments and research institutions. Its solutions are designed to help organizations build, manage and automate high-capacity networks that support applications such as cloud computing, broadband connectivity, data center interconnection and 5G services.

The company’s portfolio includes optical networking systems and coherent optical technologies, routing and switching platforms, broadband access solutions, network management software and professional services.