Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $530.5556.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CIEN shares. Argus set a $650.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research report on Friday, June 5th. UBS Group increased 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. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Ciena from $470.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on shares of Ciena from $283.00 to $531.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Ciena from $405.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th.

Ciena Trading Up 0.0%

Ciena stock opened at $445.32 on Friday. Ciena has a 52 week low of $71.72 and a 52 week high of $637.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 148.44 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $521.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $363.71.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.18. Ciena had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Ciena will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ciena news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $565.92, for a total value of $1,670,595.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 269,557 shares in the company, valued at $152,547,697.44. This represents a 1.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Brodie Gage sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $570.65, for a total transaction of $684,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 43,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,074,931.65. The trade was a 2.66% 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. Insiders sold a total of 44,174 shares of company stock worth $19,502,359 in the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 2,100.0% during the 1st quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 88 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 71.0% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ciena during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 85.5% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 141 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

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.