Gladstone Capital Management LLP Invests $2.30 Million in Ciena Co. (NYSE:CIEN)

Gladstone Capital Management LLP acquired a new position in Ciena Co. (NYSE:CIEN) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 27,100 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,298,000. Ciena accounts for approximately 0.2% of Gladstone Capital Management LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Ciena by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,316,640 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,299,004,000 after acquiring an additional 139,941 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its stake in shares of Ciena by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 5,236,920 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $444,143,000 after purchasing an additional 17,447 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Ciena by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,439,478 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $273,427,000 after purchasing an additional 53,078 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Ciena by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,419,947 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $205,301,000 after purchasing an additional 11,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ciena by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 959,831 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $81,403,000 after purchasing an additional 4,315 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

Ciena Stock Performance

NYSE:CIEN opened at $53.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 93.91, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.15. Ciena Co. has a 1 year low of $43.30 and a 1 year high of $101.44. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 3.55 and a quick ratio of 2.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Brodie Gage sold 350 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.91, for a total value of $30,068.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,256,582.77. This trade represents a 0.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 6,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.29, for a total value of $579,972.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 418,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,732,160.21. This trade represents a 1.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 66,200 shares of company stock worth $4,921,513. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CIEN. Bank of America raised Ciena from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ciena from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $84.00 to $88.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Ciena from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up previously from $75.00) on shares of Ciena in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays set a $100.00 price target on Ciena and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ciena has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.38.

Ciena 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.