Forsta AP Fonden Buys Shares of 41,300 Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Forsta AP Fonden bought a new stake in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 41,300 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,659,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Ciena during the 4th quarter valued at $189,891,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in shares of Ciena in the 4th quarter worth $3,407,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new position in shares of Ciena in the 4th quarter worth $1,663,000. National Pension Service purchased a new position in shares of Ciena in the 4th quarter worth $49,679,000. Finally, SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Ciena in the 4th quarter worth $83,000. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.51, for a total value of $1,226,585.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 281,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,909,971.15. This trade represents a 1.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jason Phipps sold 22,014 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.80, for a total value of $9,021,337.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 68 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,866.40. This represents a 99.69% 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 three months, insiders have sold 41,222 shares of company stock valued at $17,831,763. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CIEN. Barclays raised their price target on Ciena from $279.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America raised their price target on Ciena from $550.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on Ciena from $305.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Ciena from $286.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Ciena in a research note on Friday, May 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $416.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ciena presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $406.61.

Ciena Price Performance

Shares of Ciena stock opened at $580.59 on Monday. Ciena Corporation has a one year low of $70.77 and a one year high of $605.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $500.69 and its 200 day moving average is $342.67. The stock has a market cap of $82.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 369.80 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.14 and a current ratio of 2.81.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Ciena’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ciena Corporation will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current year.

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.