Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Trading 8.9% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) were up 8.9% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $293.81 and last traded at $295.5180. Approximately 1,370,898 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 3,783,704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.32.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Northland Securities set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Ciena and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Ciena to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Argus lifted their price objective on Ciena from $135.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Ciena from $175.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $241.67.

Ciena Trading Up 6.5%

The firm has a market cap of $40.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 339.87, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s 50 day moving average is $234.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 2.09.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.15. Ciena had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 2.59%.The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Ciena news, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.45, for a total value of $2,642,514.10. Following the sale, the director owned 50,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,414,350.80. The trade was a 18.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.60, for a total transaction of $784,051.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,195,264. The trade was a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 157,242 shares of company stock valued at $36,341,766. 0.93% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ciena

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at $2,747,810,000. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ciena during the third quarter valued at $292,310,000. Atreides Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena in the 2nd quarter valued at $102,705,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Ciena by 23.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,462,840 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $941,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Ciena by 2,174.2% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,143,855 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $166,625,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,557 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ciena

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.