Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Stock Falls 2.9% – What’s Next?

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) dropped 2.9% during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $163.25 and last traded at $163.9490. Approximately 7,069,476 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 9% from the average session volume of 7,788,382 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.86.

More Arista Networks News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Arista reported third-quarter revenue of $3.66 billion, up 58.5% year over year and above the $3.33 billion consensus. EPS of $1.20 also topped estimates of $1.08. Management raised its 2026 revenue outlook to $13.3 billion. Article: ANET Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Strong AI and Enterprise Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Management forecast roughly $18.5 billion in 2027 revenue, implying 38%–40% growth versus Wall Street expectations of about 28%. AI-fabric revenue is projected to double to around $7 billion, reflecting demand for networking infrastructure in AI data centers. Article: Arista Networks gets BofA backing as 2027 growth outlook tops Street
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts responded with bullish ratings and higher targets: Bank of America reiterated Buy with a $240 target, while JPMorgan raised its target to $270 and Piper Sandler to $261. These revisions signal confidence in Arista’s growth prospects.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Mark Templeton and major shareholder Andreas Bechtolsheim disclosed stock sales under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. Bechtolsheim’s sale represented only 0.15% of his holdings, so the transactions may be less indicative of a change in business outlook. Article: Arista Networks insider transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Gross margin pressure is a watch point: a larger hardware mix is expected to weigh on margins, even as operating margins remain strong. Arista’s premium valuation also leaves the stock sensitive to any shortfall against its ambitious growth targets. Article: Arista Revenue Up 58% as Q4 Outlook Slows

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ANET has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Monday. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $248.00 target price (up from $215.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective (down from $255.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $240.24.

Arista Networks Trading Up 4.9%

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $194.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $165.34. The stock has a market cap of $224.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.20, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.61.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The technology company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.12. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 33.92% and a net margin of 39.97%. The company had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 58.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arista Networks

In other news, Director Mark Templeton sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.85, for a total transaction of $829,250.00. Following the sale, the director owned 43,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,199,548.50. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Chantelle Breithaupt sold 1,224 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.00, for a total transaction of $263,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 68,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,769,855. This trade represents a 1.75% decrease in their position. 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 2,492,846 shares of company stock valued at $504,246,503. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Arista Networks

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cura Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Arista Networks by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cura Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,748 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Arista Networks by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,770 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $817,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC lifted its position in Arista Networks by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC now owns 6,352 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,318,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Madison Wealth Partners Inc lifted its position in Arista Networks by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc now owns 2,179 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Arista Networks by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,912 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $389,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.47% of the company’s stock.

Arista Networks Company Profile

Arista Networks, Inc develops and sells cloud networking solutions for data centers, cloud service providers, enterprises and specialized computing environments. The company’s products are designed to support high-performance, scalable and automated networks used for cloud computing, artificial intelligence, data analytics and other demanding applications.

Arista’s portfolio includes data center and campus switches, routing platforms, wireless networking products, network operating software and network management tools.