Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) Receives $241.67 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $241.6667.

CIEN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ciena from $138.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Evercore set a $240.00 price target on Ciena in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Ciena to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ciena in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th.

Ciena Stock Up 3.7%

Shares of CIEN stock opened at $303.85 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $243.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $181.80. 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 has a 1-year low of $49.21 and a 1-year high of $308.81. The company has a market cap of $42.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 357.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.13.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last issued 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. Ciena had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 2.59%.The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Ciena will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ciena news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 11,929 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.82, for a total value of $2,741,522.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 49,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,370,344.50. This represents a 19.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.45, for a total transaction of $2,642,514.10. Following the sale, the director directly owned 50,184 shares in the company, valued at $11,414,350.80. The trade was a 18.80% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 157,131 shares of company stock worth $36,320,587. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ciena

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ciena during the 1st quarter worth $395,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Ciena by 139.6% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 5,253 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 3,061 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Ciena by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 222,054 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $13,419,000 after acquiring an additional 3,117 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in Ciena by 14.6% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,762 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in Ciena by 29.8% in the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,868 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,575 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

Ciena Company Profile

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.