286,676 Shares in Arista Networks, Inc. $ANET Purchased by Gradient Investments LLC

Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 286,676 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,364,000. Arista Networks makes up about 0.8% of Gradient Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ANET. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Arista Networks by 159.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 121,303,125 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,606,975,000 after buying an additional 74,541,134 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arista Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,101,860,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Arista Networks by 199.0% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,630,196 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,635,978,000 after purchasing an additional 6,409,612 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in Arista Networks during the second quarter worth approximately $537,736,000. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Arista Networks by 34.6% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,725,196 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,712,788,000 after purchasing an additional 2,497,275 shares during the period. 82.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arista Networks News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: New AI networking portfolio strengthens growth outlook. Arista launched open Ethernet rack-scale architectures for high-density AI infrastructure, including scale-up and scale-out networking, liquid-cooled systems, and support for large accelerator clusters. The portfolio was developed with major partners including AMD, Arm, Broadcom, Meta, Microsoft and Qualcomm, potentially positioning Arista to benefit as hyperscalers seek alternatives to proprietary interconnects such as NVIDIA’s InfiniBand. Arista Announces Rack-Scale Architectures for Scale-Up and Scale-Out AI Fabrics
• Positive Sentiment: Investors and fund managers remain constructive on Arista’s AI opportunity. Recent investment commentary describes the company as a potential key beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending, citing solid execution, a clearer path to AI monetization and raised guidance. The stock has also recently benefited from broad demand for AI networking equipment. Arista Networks Could Be a Key Winner From the AI Infrastructure Boom
• Positive Sentiment: Recent operating performance supports the bullish thesis. Arista’s latest reported quarter exceeded consensus expectations, with revenue of approximately $3.04 billion, year-over-year growth of 37.7%, and EPS of $1.02 versus an estimated $0.89. Management’s next-quarter EPS outlook of $1.06-$1.08 indicates continued momentum ahead of the company’s November 3 earnings release. Arista Networks to Announce Q3 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock recently reached a new 52-week high before retreating. Strong AI enthusiasm and buying among technology stocks pushed ANET to record levels, but the subsequent decline reflects normal profit-taking and increased sensitivity to market conditions. Arista Networks Reaches a Fresh 52-Week High
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and a Zacks downgrade are near-term headwinds. Zacks Research lowered Arista from “strong buy” to “hold.” With the shares trading at roughly 67 times earnings, investors may be demanding sustained, above-market growth, leaving the stock vulnerable to profit-taking, higher interest rates and any signs of slowing AI spending. Arista Networks Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Insider Transactions at Arista Networks

In other Arista Networks news, major shareholder Andreas Bechtolsheim sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.95, for a total transaction of $59,685,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 180,543,048 shares in the company, valued at $35,919,039,399.60. This trade represents a 0.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 62,622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.40, for a total value of $13,238,290.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 4,876,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,030,991,880.80. This represents a 1.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,144,894 shares of company stock worth $631,310,023. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Arista Networks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Arista Networks in a research note on Monday, August 31st. They set a “buy” rating and a $220.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 target price on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.70.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ANET traded down $5.08 on Thursday, hitting $210.75. 2,429,803 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,906,116. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $196.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.66, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.60. Arista Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $114.52 and a one year high of $217.32.

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

Arista Networks Profile

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.