Mutual of America Capital Management LLC has reduced its investment in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) by 7.6% during the third quarter of 2023, as reported by HoldingsChannel. The firm now holds 65,288 shares of the telecommunications equipment provider, valued at approximately $9.51 million following the sale of 5,401 shares in this period.
Several other hedge funds have also changed their positions in Ciena. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings by 11.1%, now owning 698 shares valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Similarly, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake by 1.3%, bringing its total to 6,475 shares worth $943,000 after purchasing 80 extra shares. GAMMA Investing LLC and Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC both lifted their positions by 2.3%. The former now possesses 4,071 shares valued at $593,000, while the latter holds 4,889 shares worth $712,000 after buying 112 additional shares. Nwam LLC also increased its holdings by 4.7%, owning 2,505 shares valued at $404,000.
The trend indicates that hedge funds and institutional investors now own approximately 91.99% of Ciena’s stock, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.
Recent Performance and Stock Movement
Ciena’s stock opened at $232.13 on Tuesday, marking a 1.3% increase. The company’s stock has fluctuated, with a 12-month low of $49.21 and a high of $261.13. Ciena has reported a quick ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 2.73, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The market capitalization stands at $32.70 billion with a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 273.09.
Ciena Corporation released its quarterly earnings data on December 11, 2023. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.91, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $0.76 by $0.15. With a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 8.38%, Ciena generated $1.35 billion in revenue, exceeding forecasts of $1.29 billion and representing a year-over-year increase of 20.1%.
Insider Transactions and Analyst Ratings
In related news, Director Patrick Gallagher sold 11,618 shares on January 12, 2024, at an average price of $227.45, totaling $2,642,514.10. Following this transaction, he retained 50,184 shares valued at approximately $11,414,350.80. Senior Vice President Joseph Cumello also sold 11,929 shares on the same day, valued at $2,741,522.78. Insiders have sold a total of 167,890 shares worth $38,277,035 in the last quarter.
Wall Street analysts have varying outlooks on Ciena. BNP Paribas Exane set a price target of $185.00 with an “outperform” rating on October 13, 2023. Barclays raised its target from $138.00 to $279.00 while maintaining an “overweight” rating. B. Riley reaffirmed a “neutral” rating, and UBS Group increased its price target from $120.00 to $230.00 with a “neutral” rating. Zacks Research upgraded Ciena from a “hold” to a “strong-buy” rating on December 23, 2023. Currently, Ciena has two analysts rating it as a Strong Buy, nine as Buy, and seven as Hold, according to MarketBeat.com.
Ciena Corporation, a global provider of telecommunications networking equipment, develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms for service providers, cloud operators, and large enterprises. Its product offerings include coherent optical solutions and network automation software, which help optimize bandwidth and simplify network operations.
