Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 2,814 Shares of Ciena Corporation $CIEN

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its position in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 170,920 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 2,814 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Ciena were worth $24,898,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ciena in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ciena during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ciena during the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Ciena by 107.5% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 718 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ciena Stock Performance

Ciena stock opened at $232.13 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $32.70 billion, a PE ratio of 273.09, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Ciena Corporation has a 1 year low of $49.21 and a 1 year high of $261.13. The company’s 50-day moving average is $222.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $163.41.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.15. Ciena had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. Ciena’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Ciena Corporation will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on CIEN. Zacks Research upgraded Ciena from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ciena from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 21st. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Ciena in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Ciena from $175.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, B. Riley reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ciena in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $241.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 11,929 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.82, for a total value of $2,741,522.78. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 49,475 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares of the firm’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 transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 167,890 shares of company stock worth $38,277,035 over the last 90 days. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.