Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 5,619,035 shares, an increase of 32.4% from the January 29th total of 4,244,185 shares. Currently, 4.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,414,906 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.9 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,414,906 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.9 days. Currently, 4.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial set a $240.00 price target on Ciena in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Argus lifted their target price on Ciena from $135.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Northland Securities set a $190.00 price target on shares of Ciena and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Zacks Research lowered Ciena from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Ciena from $138.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $260.80.

Ciena Stock Up 3.4%

CIEN traded up $11.33 on Wednesday, hitting $344.40. 2,693,831 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,416,850. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $270.50 and its 200-day moving average is $202.00. Ciena has a 12 month low of $49.21 and a 12 month high of $365.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 2.73. The company has a market cap of $48.72 billion, a PE ratio of 405.18, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.08.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. Ciena had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 2.59%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Ciena will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Ciena

In related news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 11,929 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.82, for a total transaction of $2,741,522.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 49,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,370,344.50. This trade represents a 19.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.45, for a total transaction of $2,642,514.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 50,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,414,350.80. This trade represents a 18.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 156,235 shares of company stock valued at $36,941,890. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in Ciena during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ciena by 71.0% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Ciena during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ciena by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 200 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ciena by 104.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 204 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is currently 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.