Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $309.59 and last traded at $309.6710, with a volume of 113381 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $302.33.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. B. Riley Financial reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, December 12th. Raymond James Financial set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Ciena from $138.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Ciena from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $190.00 price target on Ciena and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $241.67.

Ciena Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $44.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 366.60, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The business’s 50 day moving average is $247.50 and its 200-day moving average is $184.79.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.54 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In related news, SVP Jason Phipps sold 21,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.89, for a total transaction of $5,300,631.87. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 91,765 shares in the company, valued at $22,747,625.85. The trade was a 18.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $11,414,350.80. This trade represents a 18.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 157,131 shares of company stock worth $36,320,587 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ciena

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new stake in Ciena in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Ciena in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Ciena by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 200 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 104 shares during 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.