SEB Asset Management AB Buys Shares of 37,479 Ciena Corporation $CIEN

SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new position in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 37,479 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $14,550,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ciena by 71.0% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in Ciena during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its position in Ciena by 45.3% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 154 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its stake in Ciena by 635.7% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. 91.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ciena Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE:CIEN opened at $378.31 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 126.10 and a beta of 1.27. Ciena Corporation has a 1-year low of $83.20 and a 1-year high of $637.51. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $491.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $405.90. 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 (NYSE:CIEN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. Ciena had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The firm’s revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ciena

In other Ciena news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.33, for a total transaction of $739,599.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 42,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,992,499.76. This trade represents a 3.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $562.05, for a total value of $1,659,171.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 272,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $153,163,683.45. This trade represents a 1.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 21,627 shares of company stock worth $10,974,985. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on CIEN shares. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on Ciena from $320.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on shares of Ciena from $350.00 to $720.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $615.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research note on Friday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Ciena from $380.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Ciena from $285.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ciena currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $530.56.

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.