Ciena Co. (NYSE:CIEN) Shares Bought by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Ciena Co. (NYSE:CIEN) by 157.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 111,536 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 68,285 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.08% of Ciena worth $9,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CIEN. Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at $59,000. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at $212,000. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ciena by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 35,710 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,986,000 after purchasing an additional 4,235 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena during the fourth quarter worth $755,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Ciena by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 38,350 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $3,252,000 after purchasing an additional 5,684 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

Ciena Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:CIEN opened at $74.68 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.02, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.11. Ciena Co. has a 1-year low of $44.69 and a 1-year high of $101.44. The company has a current ratio of 3.55, a quick ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $64.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.16.

Insider Activity at Ciena

In other Ciena news, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 6,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $488,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 368,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,522,472. This represents a 1.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP David M. Rothenstein sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.88, for a total value of $172,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 207,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,283,645.60. The trade was a 1.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 49,288 shares of company stock valued at $3,211,852. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Ciena from $88.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Northland Capmk raised Ciena from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Ciena from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Ciena from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities cut their target price on Ciena from $73.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ciena has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.62.

Ciena Company Profile

Ciena Corporation provides hardware and software services for delivery of video, data, and voice traffic metro, aggregation, and access communications network worldwide. The company’s Networking Platforms segment offers convergence of coherent optical transport, open optical networking, optical transport network switching, IP routing, and switching services.