Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $599.50 and last traded at $578.5230, with a volume of 60571 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $587.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ciena from $380.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Ciena from $345.00 to $658.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on Ciena from $222.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Ciena from $425.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ciena presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $398.83.

Ciena Stock Down 1.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $82.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 368.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $473.40 and a 200 day moving average of $326.32. The company has a quick ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.18. Ciena had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 4.47%.The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ciena news, SVP Brodie Gage sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $405.00, for a total value of $2,025,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 46,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,768,105. This trade represents a 9.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.51, for a total transaction of $1,226,585.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 281,365 shares in the company, valued at $116,909,971.15. This represents a 1.04% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 44,174 shares of company stock valued at $18,878,661 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ciena

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Ciena by 635.7% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 71.0% during 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. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the first quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ciena by 85.5% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 141 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ciena during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 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.