278,089 Arista Networks, Inc. $ANET Shares Acquired by Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI lifted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) by 2,885.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 287,728 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 278,089 shares during the quarter. Arista Networks comprises approximately 3.6% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s holdings in Arista Networks were worth $58,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Arista Networks by 4.3% in the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 9,357,496 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,589,651,000 after acquiring an additional 388,354 shares in the last quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Arista Networks by 2,827.9% during the third quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 52,381 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $10,664,000 after purchasing an additional 50,592 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services purchased a new position in shares of Arista Networks in the first quarter valued at $5,279,000. Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 564.1% in the second quarter. Whitaker Myers Wealth Managers LTD. now owns 16,847 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,862,000 after purchasing an additional 14,310 shares during the period. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Arista Networks by 521.6% during the 2nd quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 32,657 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,548,000 after purchasing an additional 27,403 shares in the last quarter. 82.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Arista Networks

Here are the key news stories impacting Arista Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The rack-scale launch could broaden Arista’s addressable market as hyperscalers seek flexible, interoperable Ethernet alternatives for AI clusters. Can Arista’s New Rack-Scale Ethernet Solutions for AI Stoke Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary continues to identify ANET as a potential beneficiary of the AI infrastructure boom, with growing Ethernet demand from large cloud customers supporting the bullish outlook. Arista Networks Could Be a Key Winner From the AI Infrastructure Boom
• Positive Sentiment: Arista’s strong fundamentals reinforce the growth narrative: recent revenue rose 37.7% year over year to $3.04 billion, while quarterly EPS of $1.02 exceeded the $0.89 consensus estimate. Management has raised its 2026 sales outlook three times, citing AI customers.
• Neutral Sentiment: Options-market commentary describes the stock as being in a bullish trend and highlights spread trades for investors seeking shorter-term exposure, but this reflects trading sentiment rather than a change in Arista’s fundamentals. Arista Networks Stock In A Bull Trend Offers Spread Trade With A Fast Return
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a key risk. Arista trades at roughly 66 times earnings versus about 21 times for the S&P 500, leaving the stock vulnerable if AI-related growth slows, customer concentration weighs on results or margins come under pressure. Arista Stock Rises 64.7% YTD: Is There More Upside Ahead?
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 460,374 shares worth approximately $97.6 million, while CFO Chantelle Breithaupt sold 1,224 shares. Both transactions were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their significance as discretionary bearish signals but still adding selling pressure.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

Shares of Arista Networks stock opened at $216.63 on Friday. Arista Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $114.52 and a 1 year high of $217.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $198.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $172.05. The firm has a market cap of $273.22 billion, a PE ratio of 68.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.60.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The technology company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 30.65% and a net margin of 38.37%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. Arista Networks has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.060-1.080 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 767,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total transaction of $154,341,575.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 16,387,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,297,589,536.82. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, major shareholder Andreas Bechtolsheim sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.30, for a total value of $60,990,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 181,143,048 shares in the company, valued at $36,826,381,658.40. This trade represents a 0.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 3,468,906 shares of company stock worth $706,366,437. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ANET. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Arista Networks from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Arista Networks from $210.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research lowered Arista Networks from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and set a $255.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Arista Networks from $175.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.45.

About Arista Networks

Arista Networks, Inc develops and sells cloud networking solutions for data centers, campus environments and high-performance computing applications. Its products include Ethernet switches, routers, wireless access points and related networking equipment designed to support cloud computing, artificial intelligence, enterprise and service-provider networks.

The company’s software portfolio includes Arista EOS, its network operating system, and CloudVision, a platform that helps customers manage, automate and monitor network infrastructure.