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California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN – Free Report) by 49,854.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 104,748,296 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 104,538,607 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 74.00% of Ciena worth $51,385,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CIEN. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ciena in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,747,810,000. State Street Corp boosted its position in Ciena by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,102,409 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,193,300,000 after purchasing an additional 750,128 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Ciena by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,051,625 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $947,554,000 after purchasing an additional 1,404,132 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Ciena by 10.4% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,495,795 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $284,313,000 after purchasing an additional 329,821 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Ciena by 30,114.5% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,870,677 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $671,365,000 after purchasing an additional 2,861,176 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ciena News Roundup Here are the key news stories impacting Ciena this week:

Positive Sentiment: Ciena reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.11 versus the $1.73 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 37% year over year to $1.67 billion, topping expectations. The earnings beat was driven by strong optical networking demand from cloud and AI data-center customers. Ciena Q3 earnings beat Positive Sentiment: Management raised fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $6.4 billion-$6.5 billion, above the roughly $6.3 billion consensus range, and projected fourth-quarter revenue of $1.7 billion-$1.8 billion. Ciena also expects at least 30% revenue growth in fiscal 2027, supported by a backlog exceeding $10 billion and a 25%-27% operating-margin outlook. Ciena fiscal 2027 outlook Positive Sentiment: Analysts and financial media continue to identify Ciena as a major beneficiary of a multiyear AI-related optical infrastructure investment cycle, with demand from cloud providers helping support growth beyond the current quarter. Ciena AI optical infrastructure demand Neutral Sentiment: Supply availability is the main constraint on converting Ciena’s strong demand and backlog into revenue during fiscal 2027. This supports pricing and visibility but may limit near-term upside if component shortages persist. Ciena supply constraints Negative Sentiment: Several firms lowered price targets after the report despite retaining positive ratings: JPMorgan reduced its target to $605, while TD Cowen, Rosenblatt and Needham also cut targets. The revisions reflect concerns that Ciena’s valuation and in-line quarterly guidance already discount much of the AI growth opportunity. Analysts lower Ciena price targets Negative Sentiment: At an elevated earnings multiple, investors may demand continued upside surprises. A CEO sale of 2,952 shares worth about $1.07 million adds modest pressure, although it was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Ciena CEO insider sale Ciena Stock Performance CIEN opened at $321.52 on Monday. Ciena Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.66 and a 12-month high of $637.51. The stock has a market cap of $45.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.77 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $403.61 and a 200-day moving average of $438.25. The company has a quick ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 3.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Ciena (NYSE:CIEN – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $2.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Ciena had a return on equity of 25.33% and a net margin of 10.87%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CIEN shares. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on Ciena from $600.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Ciena in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Argus set a $650.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a research report on Friday, June 5th. CL King set a $347.00 price target on shares of Ciena in a research report on Friday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities cut their price target on shares of Ciena from $720.00 to $525.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $480.95.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on CIEN

Insider Buying and Selling at Ciena In other Ciena news, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.33, for a total value of $739,599.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 42,872 shares in the company, valued at $19,992,499.76. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Brodie Gage sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.10, for a total transaction of $559,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 42,741 shares in the company, valued at $19,921,580.10. The trade was a 2.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,422 shares of company stock worth $11,038,802. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ciena Company Profile (Free Report)

Ciena Corporation (NYSE: CIEN) is a global supplier of telecommunications networking equipment, software and services. The company develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms that enable service providers, cloud operators and large enterprises to build, manage and scale their networks. Ciena’s product portfolio includes coherent optical solutions, packet networking platforms and a suite of network automation software designed to optimize bandwidth, reduce latency and simplify network operations.

In addition to hardware offerings, Ciena provides professional services and support, including network design, implementation and ongoing maintenance.

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3.9.2026 22:07

Wall Street má za sebou solidní růst tažený výrokem člena FEDu Wallera, který naznačil ochotu hlasovat pro podržení sazeb na současné úrovni. Růst indexů jde na vrub především největším společnostem jako Nvidia, Meta nebo Microsoft. Index S&P 500 je půl procenta od historického maxima.

Index Dow Jones +1,18 % na 53686,11 b.
S&P 500 +1,06 % na 7747,71 b.
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Index S&P 500 +1,06 % na 7747,71 b. Nejsilnější sektory S&P Změna Nejslabší sektory S&P Změna Zbytná spotřeba +1,6 % Energie -0,7 % Finanční sektor +1,6 % Základní materiály -0,5 % Komunikační služby +1,5 % Nezbytná spotřeba 0 % Nejsilnější akcie S&P Změna Nejslabší akcie S&P Změna Robinhood Markets (HOOD) +17 % Ciena Corp (CIEN) -10 % Coinbase Global (COIN) +10 % Tyson Foods (TSN) -7,3 % Palantir Technologies (PLTR) +7,7 % Charter Communications (CHTR) -4,8 % ServiceNow (NOW) +6,5 % Albemarle Corp (ALB) -4,1 % Principal Financial Group (PFG) +6,5 % General Mills (GIS) -3,3 %
Martin Varecha
Fio banka, a.s.
Prohlášení

Ciena (CIEN -11.08%) stock tumbled 9.5% through 1:30 p.m. ET Thursday despite beating on earnings this morning.

Heading into the company's fiscal Q3 2026 report, analysts forecast Ciena would earn $1.72 per share (non-GAAP) on $1.63 billion in sales. In fact, Ciena earned $2.11 per share on $1.67 billion in sales.

So why aren't investors cheering Ciena's performance?

Image source: Getty Images.

Ciena Q3 earnings Sales, after all, surged 37% year over year in Q3, and non-GAAP earnings more than tripled. Earnings calculated under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) weren't quite as good as the non-GAAP number, but at $1.83 per share, were still five times as much as Ciena earned in Q3 2025.

CEO Gary Smith called the company's performance last quarter "outstanding" and confirmed, "AI continues to drive compounding waves of network investment."

CFO Marc Graff predicted Ciena will deliver "increasingly profitable growth" as it expands its production capacity to support the AI revolution.

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What's next for Ciena stock What does this mean for investors?

Ciena forecasts that it will deliver about $1.75 billion in revenue in Q4. Management didn't provide GAAP earnings guidance but noted that its gross profit margin for the quarter will be only about 45%. While that's within the margin of error for the 45.4% gross margin Ciena reported for Q3, it still suggests margins might dip slightly.

Is 40 basis points of gross margin slippage enough to explain the stock's near-10% sell-off today? Actually, it may be -- when you consider how priced for perfection Ciena stock already was. Valued at 120 times earnings, Ciena might be worth its price if it succeeds in averaging 75% annual earnings growth over the next five years, as Wall Street forecasts.

If margins suffer and Ciena's growth slows, however -- look out below.

Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Ciena. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The AI Boom Has a Second Act—And It's Playing Out in OpticsCiena NYSE: CIEN reported record fiscal third-quarter 2026 results, with revenue, operating margin and adjusted earnings per share reaching new highs as demand for optical networking equipment accelerated across data-center and wide-area network applications.

Revenue for the quarter was $1.67 billion, up 37% from a year earlier and at the top end of the company’s guidance. Adjusted operating margin reached 22.5%, more than double the year-ago level and above guidance, while adjusted earnings per share rose 215% year over year to a record $2.11.

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Beyond NVIDIA: Picks-and-Shovels AI Plays with Strong MomentumPresident and CEO Gary Smith said the performance came amid “an extraordinary industry demand environment” tied to investment in data-center infrastructure and artificial intelligence. He said AI workloads are increasing requirements for high-speed, low-latency optical connectivity both between and within data centers.

Backlog Climbs as Orders Outpace Revenue Ciena exited the quarter with backlog of $8.5 billion, an $800 million sequential increase. The company’s book-to-bill ratio was significantly above one during the quarter, and management said it expects backlog to rise at a faster rate in the fiscal fourth quarter.

Light Speed Returns: Corning Cashes In on NVIDIA GrowthSmith said that, one month into the fourth quarter, Ciena had booked nearly as much demand as it received during the entire third quarter. The company expects to finish fiscal 2026 with more than $10 billion in backlog, extending into fiscal 2028.

Management attributed the elevated backlog primarily to lead times and supply limitations rather than weaker conversion of demand. Executive Advisor Scott McFeely said the “vast majority” of the expected $10 billion backlog carries customer-requested delivery dates in 2027, and that the backlog covers most of the company’s preliminary 2027 revenue outlook.

Chief Financial Officer Marc Graff said industry capacity will need to expand substantially to balance supply and demand. He said Ciena does not expect that balance to be restored before 2028.

Smith said approximately half of Ciena’s business now comes directly from hyperscalers. He added that so-called “neo scalers” are becoming more active in networking investment, including through fiber deployment and network agreements, particularly in the U.S. and international markets.

Optical Portfolio Drives Growth Ciena said combined optical networks revenue, including interconnects, increased more than 45% year over year. Revenue from its RLS optical line systems and Waveserver systems each grew more than 55%, while interconnects revenue more than doubled. Direct cloud-provider revenue climbed more than 80%.

The company said its in-and-around-data-center revenue has quadrupled year to date, exceeding its prior goal of tripling that business. Two customers each accounted for more than 10% of third-quarter revenue.

Smith said adoption of the company’s WaveLogic 6 Extreme platform, which he described as the only 1.6-terabit high-performance modem currently on the market, has exceeded the ramp of the prior WaveLogic 5 Extreme generation. Ciena also shipped more than twice as many 800 ZR pluggable optics in the third quarter as it did in the prior quarter.

The company expects initial customer standardization of its HyperRail next-generation line-system product by the end of 2026, followed by material revenue scaling through 2027. Graff said HyperRail revenue could reach several hundred million dollars in 2027, though the pace could be faster if more components were available. He said the product is expected to carry better economics than the company’s existing RLS offerings and be accretive to overall margins as it ramps.

Ciena also said it received sample orders from several anchor customers for Vesta, its open co-packaged optics solution. Management expects revenue from that product to begin in 2027 and ramp into 2028.

Margins, Supply Investments and Customer Pricing Adjusted gross margin was 46.4% in the third quarter, including roughly 70 basis points of benefit from tariff refunds. Graff said gross margin would have reached the top end of guidance even without that benefit, citing product mix, pricing discipline and execution.

The company generated $116 million of free cash flow during the quarter while investing in working capital to support inventories and revenue growth. Ciena ended the quarter with $2.8 billion in cash and equivalents.

Graff said Ciena has finalized long-term supply agreements for certain key components through 2029, including incremental capacity intended to support customer demand. The company expects its investments under those agreements to reduce cash from operations in the fiscal fourth quarter.

In discussions with customers, Graff said Ciena has negotiated price increases ranging from high-single-digit percentages to high-teens or low-20% levels, depending on customer and product line. Some of those increases will apply selectively to existing backlog, he said. The negotiations also include payment terms, fill rates and reciprocal commitments intended to improve supply security for both Ciena and its customers.

Graff said tariffs are generally neutral to margins because the company passes tariff costs through to customers. He noted that the third-quarter refund benefit was a one-time accounting adjustment and said Ciena is evaluating potential effects from Canada’s tariff regime, which could amount to about $10 million per quarter before mitigation efforts.

Fourth-Quarter and 2027 Outlook For fiscal fourth-quarter 2026, Ciena forecast revenue of $1.75 billion, plus or minus $50 million. It projected adjusted gross margin of 45%, plus or minus 50 basis points, and adjusted operating expenses of about $415 million, plus or minus $10 million. The company expects adjusted operating margin of approximately 20%, plus or minus 50 basis points.

The outlook raises Ciena’s full-year revenue midpoint to $6.42 billion and calls for full-year adjusted operating margin between 20% and 21%, which would exceed 20% for the first time in company history. Ciena also expects to increase its market share in the combined optical systems and pluggable optics market by about four percentage points to roughly 30%.

Looking ahead, management provided an early view that fiscal 2027 revenue will grow at least 30% year over year to $8.3 billion to $8.4 billion, with potential upside dependent on component supply. Ciena expects 2027 gross margin of at least 45% to 46% and adjusted operating margin between 25% and 27%.

Smith said the company believes its addressable market could expand from about $25 billion currently to about $50 billion by 2029 as AI-related networking requirements expand. He said Ciena remains in the early stages of a multiyear investment cycle involving data-center interconnection, distributed AI training, inference traffic and broader network upgrades.

About Ciena (NYSE:CIEN)Ciena Corporation NYSE: CIEN is a global supplier of telecommunications networking equipment, software and services. The company develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms that enable service providers, cloud operators and large enterprises to build, manage and scale their networks. Ciena's product portfolio includes coherent optical solutions, packet networking platforms and a suite of network automation software designed to optimize bandwidth, reduce latency and simplify network operations.

In addition to hardware offerings, Ciena provides professional services and support, including network design, implementation and ongoing maintenance.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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Ciena CIEN experienced a significant decline today, despite reporting impressive Q3 results that surpassed expectations. The company's adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.11 more than tripled year-over-year and exceeded forecasts. Revenue surged by 37% to a record $1.67 billion, driven by increasing demand for high-speed optical connectivity fueled by AI. For Q4, Ciena's revenue guidance of $1.70 to $1.80 billion also exceeded expectations at the midpoint. Looking ahead, Ciena anticipates at least 30% revenue growth for FY27, with adjusted gross margins projected at 45-46% and adjusted operating margins between 25-27%.

Drivers: - Cloud provider revenue rose 82% year-over-year, constituting 53% of total revenue. - Significant investments in AI-related network infrastructure contributed to this growth. - Combined optical networks revenue, including interconnects, grew over 45%, with RLS and Waveserver each increasing more than 55%, and interconnects more than doubling. Backlog: - Ciena's backlog increased by $800 million sequentially to $8.5 billion, with a Q3 book-to-bill ratio significantly above 1.0. - Orders have accelerated, with bookings in the first month of Q4 nearing the total for Q3, and Ciena expects to end FY26 with over $10 billion in backlog, which covers most of its FY27 revenue outlook. Margins: - Adjusted gross margin reached 46.4%, exceeding guidance by 90 basis points and expanding 450 basis points year-over-year, aided by tariff refunds. - Adjusted operating margin hit a record 22.5%, surpassing guidance by 250 basis points, with favorable pricing trends observed. Capacity: - Supply constraints remain a key challenge, with management indicating FY27 revenue could be higher if additional supply were accessible. - Ciena has secured long-term agreements for key components through 2029, including additional capacity to meet rising customer demand. Outlook: - Ciena believes the industry is in the early stages of a multiyear network investment cycle. - The backlog extends well into FY28, and customer commitments now reach through 2029, providing substantial visibility as hyperscalers expand their connectivity. Ciena's strong quarterly performance, characterized by increasing orders and a robust backlog, offers a positive outlook for the coming years. The preliminary forecast of at least 30% revenue growth suggests a promising year ahead, albeit constrained by supply issues. Profitability is also on the rise, with management targeting a 25-27% adjusted operating margin for FY27. The introduction of Hyper-Rail in FY27 is expected to generate additional revenue and improve margins compared to existing RLS. Overall, the results underscore a resilient AI-driven optical investment cycle extending into FY27 and beyond. The current stock decline appears to reflect high expectations and valuations rather than any deterioration in fundamentals or demand.

This stock alert was generated using automated technology and GuruFocus financial data to provide readers with timely and accurate market reporting. This content was reviewed by GuruFocus editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

Disclosures I/We may personally own shares in some of the companies mentioned above. However, those positions are not material to either the company or to my/our portfolios.

Ciena (CIEN - Free Report) came out with quarterly earnings of $2.11 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.74 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.67 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.

This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +21.26%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this developer of high-speed networking technology would post earnings of $1.46 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.64, delivering a surprise of +12.33%.

Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times.

Ciena, which belongs to the Zacks Communication - Components industry, posted revenues of $1.67 billion for the quarter ended July 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.44%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $1.22 billion. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters.

The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call.

Ciena shares have added about 51.4% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 12%.

What's Next for Ciena?While Ciena has outperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock?

There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately.

Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions.

Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Ciena was favorable. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to outperform the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $1.83 on $1.7 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and $6.55 on $6.33 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year.

Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Communication - Components is currently in the top 13% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.

Another stock from the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector, ServiceTitan Inc. (TTAN - Free Report) , has yet to report results for the quarter ended July 2026. The results are expected to be released on September 8.

This company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.36 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +9.1%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days.

ServiceTitan Inc.'s revenues are expected to be $285.14 million, up 17.8% from the year-ago quarter.

FULTON, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ciena Corp. today announced financial results for its fiscal third quarter ended August 1, 2026. Revenue was $1.67 billion, up 37% year-over-year.

Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) will release its third quarter earnings report before the opening bell on Thursday, Sept. 3.

Analysts expect the Hanover, Maryland-based company to report quarterly earnings of $1.73 per share, up from 67 cents per share in the year-ago period. The consensus estimate for Ciena’s quarterly revenue is $1.64 billion. It reported $1.22 billion last year, according to Benzinga Pro.

On June 8, Ciena announced a proposed offering of $2 billion of convertible senior notes.

Shares of Ciena fell 1.8% to close at $354.16 on Wednesday.

Benzinga readers can access the latest analyst ratings on the Analyst Stock Ratings page. Readers can sort by stock ticker, company name, analyst firm, rating change or other variables.

Let’s have a look at how Benzinga’s most-accurate analysts have rated the company in the recent period.

B. Riley Securities analyst Dave Kang maintained a Neutral rating and cut the price target from $516 to $413 on Aug. 31, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 81%. Needham analyst Ryan Koontz maintained a Buy rating with a price target of $600 on Aug. 26, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 80%. Rosenblatt analyst Mike Genovese maintained a Buy rating with a price target of $720 on Aug. 24, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 84%. Northland Capital Markets analyst Tim Savageaux upgraded the stock from Market Perform to Outperform and boosted the price target from $450 to $500 on Aug. 19, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 82%. TD Cowen analyst Joshua Buchalter maintained a Buy rating and cut the price target from $675 to $575 on Aug. 18, 2026. This analyst has an accuracy rate of 55%. Trending

Considering buying CIEN stock? Here’s what analysts think:

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Thursday is going to be an important day for Ciena (CIEN -4.85%) investors, as it's when their company unveils a fresh quarterly earnings report. Not for the first time, hopes are high for the tech hardware maker. It's one of the better-known equipment suppliers helping to feed the feverish build-out of artificial intelligence (AI) compute. As such, analysts are -- again -- predicting extremely robust growth.

Ciena has a recent history of not only hitting that mark but also beating the consensus estimates of those prognosticators. This, however, didn't help its stock rise after the previous earnings report. Here's what might get the shares to defy gravity this time around.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Double- and triple-digit growthCiena is scheduled to publish its fiscal 2026 third-quarter results and host a conference call to discuss them before market open on Thursday. It'll be broadcasting to an investment community that continues to expect much from the company.

The consensus analyst revenue estimate for the quarter is $1.64 billion. That's a robust 34% above the same period of 2025, although it sits at nearly the midpoint of the company's guidance range of almost $1.58 billion to nearly $1.68 billion.

A higher bar for Ciena to clear will be net income not in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (non-GAAP, or adjusted). This is expected to soar by 158% -- wow! -- to $1.73 per share. The company hasn't provided guidance for this metric.

Ciena is quite the grizzled veteran in the optical networking components niche. The current boom in its business is driven by products that enable extremely high-speed data transfers, which are crucial for resource-intensive AI capabilities.

That explains the rosy third-quarter projections from both analysts and company management. Yet the gap between revenue and adjusted profitability growth is striking.

This is based on recent history; Ciena has done an effective job of designing increasingly more cost-effective products. It's also enacted strategic price increases from time to time, which isn't a challenge in such a demand-heavy environment. Another factor at work is Ciena's shift toward more state-of-the-art, premium products with relatively high price tags.

The company's GAAP gross margins tell the tale. Over the past five quarters, they've risen steadily but surely, from 40.2% in the second frame of fiscal 2025 to 44% in the same period of 2026.

Fall from graceI need to emphasize that after Ciena reported its latest earnings (for the fiscal second quarter) in early June, it was hit by an aggressive sell-off by investors. Its stock still hasn't come close to recovering from this.

That's usually not what happens when a company posts a beat-and-raise quarter marked by skyrocketing growth in core fundamentals.

To me, that sharply negative reaction was due to two factors. One was the extreme run-up in the company's shares, which had risen 165% year-to-date as of the day before the earnings release. At that point, it became clear to many that the company was a star pick-and-shovel play on the AI revolution. Investor expectations, then, were sky-high, to the point that only an absolute blowout of a quarter would have sustained that momentum.

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364.25

Major factor No. 2 was the performance of Broadcom (AVGO -1.93%), a bellwether for AI adoption (as it's the top designer of custom AI chips favored by many prominent developers). Broadcom reported its own fiscal second-quarter figures a mere two days before Ciena, and the dynamic was similar. A sustained stock rally had left Broadcom richly priced, and despite record results, powerful growth, and meaty margins its stock tumbled. In retrospect, nothing short of a real stunner on the upside was likely to push it higher.

A more forgiving market?So the good news for Ciena is that the pressure has eased since those peak share price days (and I mean that, as its equity hit a more than 25-year high before the offending second-quarter release). At this point, folks are looking for good reasons to believe in the stock again.

I think the company will deliver. After all, it notched earnings beats on lofty analyst estimates in all four of its trailing quarters. And it's not like demand for crucial AI components is fading at all; in fact, the opposite is true. I believe many investors will be looking for yet another raise in guidance, either of the quarterly or (preferably) the annual variety. This has become habitual, too, and the stock might sink if this doesn't occur.

I'm cautiously optimistic here. I think investors won't be as demanding of Ciena as they were in the run-up to the second-quarter print, and its shares will see a lift. However, the company will have to post yet another impressive performance; no matter how strong a business or how favorable its environment, that's never an easy accomplishment.

Wall Street analysts expect Ciena (CIEN - Free Report) to post quarterly earnings of $1.73 per share in its upcoming report, which indicates a year-over-year increase of 158.2%. Revenues are expected to be $1.64 billion, up 34.6% from the year-ago quarter.

The current level reflects no revision in the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter over the past 30 days. This demonstrates how the analysts covering the stock have collectively reappraised their initial projections over this period.

Before a company announces its earnings, it is essential to take into account any changes made to earnings estimates. This is a valuable factor in predicting the potential reactions of investors toward the stock. Empirical research has consistently shown a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and the short-term price performance of a stock.

While investors usually depend on consensus earnings and revenue estimates to assess the business performance for the quarter, delving into analysts' forecasts for certain key metrics often provides a more comprehensive understanding.

That said, let's delve into the average estimates of some Ciena metrics that Wall Street analysts commonly model and monitor.

Analysts expect 'Revenue- Total Networking Platforms' to come in at $1.31 billion. The estimate suggests a change of +39.2% year over year.

It is projected by analysts that the 'Revenue- Total Global Services' will reach $200.34 million. The estimate indicates a year-over-year change of +25.1%.

The consensus among analysts is that 'Revenue- Networking Platforms- Routing and Switching' will reach $172.34 million. The estimate suggests a change of +36.9% year over year.

The consensus estimate for 'Revenue- Services' stands at $287.84 million. The estimate points to a change of +18.7% from the year-ago quarter.

According to the collective judgment of analysts, 'Revenue- Networking Platforms- Optical Networking' should come in at $1.16 billion. The estimate suggests a change of +42.5% year over year.

Analysts predict that the 'Revenue- Blue Planet Automation Software and Services' will reach $28.25 million. The estimate indicates a change of +1.6% from the prior-year quarter.

Based on the collective assessment of analysts, 'Revenue- Platform Software and Services' should arrive at $99.75 million. The estimate suggests a change of +10.8% year over year.

Analysts' assessment points toward 'Revenue- Products' reaching $1.35 billion. The estimate suggests a change of +37.7% year over year.

View all Key Company Metrics for Ciena here>>>

Over the past month, shares of Ciena have returned +0.4% versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +3.9% change. Currently, CIEN carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), suggesting that its performance may align with the overall market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .

FULTON, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A recent Ciena survey of service providers underscores the revenue potential of AI-driven networking. Ninety percent1 of respondents expect high-capacity AI network services – connectivity to AI infrastructure required by enterprises, hyperscalers, and neoscalers – to drive revenue growth over the next three to five years, with 56% citing them as their primary source of net-new revenue. Confidence is equally strong in managed optical fiber network (MOFN) services,.

CIEN heads into Q3 earnings with AI-driven connectivity demand, a $7.7B backlog and cloud momentum, while supply constraints remain a key risk.

Looking for a stock that has been consistently beating earnings estimates and might be well positioned to keep the streak alive in its next quarterly report? Ciena (CIEN - Free Report) , which belongs to the Zacks Communication - Components industry, could be a great candidate to consider.

This developer of high-speed networking technology has an established record of topping earnings estimates, especially when looking at the previous two reports. The company boasts an average surprise for the past two quarters of 15.37%.

For the last reported quarter, Ciena came out with earnings of $1.64 per share versus the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.46 per share, representing a surprise of 12.33%. For the previous quarter, the company was expected to post earnings of $1.14 per share and it actually produced earnings of $1.35 per share, delivering a surprise of 18.42%.

Price and EPS Surprise

For Ciena, estimates have been trending higher, thanks in part to this earnings surprise history. And when you look at the stock's positive Zacks Earnings ESP (Expected Surprise Prediction), it's a great indicator of a future earnings beat, especially when combined with its solid Zacks Rank.

Our research shows that stocks with the combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) or better produce a positive surprise nearly 70% of the time. In other words, if you have 10 stocks with this combination, the number of stocks that beat the consensus estimate could be as high as seven.

The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter; the Most Accurate Estimate is a version of the Zacks Consensus whose definition is related to change. The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information, which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier.

Ciena has an Earnings ESP of +0.58% at the moment, suggesting that analysts have grown bullish on its near-term earnings potential. When you combine this positive Earnings ESP with the stock's Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), it shows that another beat is possibly around the corner. The company's next earnings report is expected to be released on September 3, 2026.

When the Earnings ESP comes up negative, investors should note that this will reduce the predictive power of the metric. But, a negative value is not indicative of a stock's earnings miss.

Many companies end up beating the consensus EPS estimate, but that may not be the sole basis for their stocks moving higher. On the other hand, some stocks may hold their ground even if they end up missing the consensus estimate.

Because of this, it's really important to check a company's Earnings ESP ahead of its quarterly release to increase the odds of success. Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they've reported.

Ciena (CIEN -1.50%) could benefit from a problem that faster AI chips can't solve. As computing spreads across larger data center campuses, moving enormous amounts of information between buildings becomes critical. Ciena's optical networking technology may put it in an increasingly important position if AI infrastructure continues scaling this way.

Stock prices used were the market prices of Aug. 7, 2026. The video was published on Aug. 19, 2026.

Rick Orford has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Ciena. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Rick Orford is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through their link, they will earn some extra money that supports their channel. Their opinions remain their own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.

Key Takeaways Ciena's service provider business grew 28% year over year and India revenues more than doubled on MOFN demand.Ciena raised fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $6.3 billion ( /-$100 million) after Q2 revenues rose 40%. Ciena faces tougher optical competition as Cisco and Nokia expand their networking portfolio. Ciena Corporation’s (CIEN - Free Report) strengthening financial performance highlights the growing importance of managed optical fiber networks (“MOFN”) as artificial intelligence (“AI”) drives demand for high-capacity, low-latency connectivity.

In the last reported quarter, service provider business grew 28% year over year, with India emerging as a particularly strong market. Revenues from India more than doubled, driven by demand for MOFN deployments.

Service providers are increasingly partnering with cloud providers to deliver connectivity via MOFN across various countries.  On the last earnings call, Ciena noted that service providers are benefiting from renewed investments in optical infrastructure after years of relatively limited spending. According to management, service providers had underinvested in optical networks for roughly five years while focusing heavily on 5G investments.

India remains an important market for MOFN deployments, but Ciena believes the opportunity extends well beyond India as hyperscalers face challenges in building networks everywhere, particularly across different countries and last-mile markets. Regulatory considerations also make partnerships with service providers strategically important.

As demand for high-speed connectivity continues to expand, Ciena appears well-positioned to drive more revenues from its service provider segment. With second-quarter fiscal 2026 revenues rising 40% year over year to $1.57 billion and backlog reaching $7.7 billion, Ciena entered the second half with significant demand visibility. The company also lifted its fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $6.3 billion (+/-$100 million), implying 32% growth at the midpoint.

However, the opportunity is unfolding in an intensely competitive market. Ciena faces tough competition from the likes of Cisco Systems (CSCO - Free Report) as well as Nokia (NOK - Free Report) .

Mapping the Competitive TerrainNokia’s Infinera buyout has reinforced its optical networking portfolio. In the second quarter of 2026, revenues from Optical Networks surged 20% year over year, buoyed by demand from AI and cloud customers. Demand from telecom customers investing in transport infrastructure was another driver. AI & Cloud segment revenues more than doubled year over year in the second quarter of 2026, reaching €446 million. Management also noted that its €2.8 billion AI and cloud order intake was weighted toward optical, highlighting continued hyperscale-driven demand.

Nokia is also seeing demand for both data-center interconnect and scale-across applications, improving its position in the expanding optical networking market.

Cisco is benefiting from broader optical demand as well, with Acacia receiving more than $1 billion in orders in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. Service provider and cloud orders surged 95% year over year, while telco orders increased more than 30%.

The company is also gaining share in the MOFN market. Cisco secured a hyperscaler design win for a managed optical fiber network that uses its line-system technology and supports digital coherent optics to operate directly in third-party equipment. Management highlighted the win as strategic, noting that it positions Cisco as an alternative supplier to an “incumbent competitor” and could potentially “disrupt” conventional MOFN delivery.

CIEN Price Performance, Valuation and EstimatesShares of CIEN are up 7.1% in the past month compared with Communications - Components industry’s 17.2% growth.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

CIEN trades at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 45.24, slightly above the industry’s 44.28.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CIEN’s earnings for fiscal 2026 has been unchanged over the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

CIEN currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Shares of three AI infrastructure heavyweights are leading the S&P 500 lower into the final hour of Tuesday’s session. Coherent (NYSE:COHR | COHR Price Prediction) is off 11%, Ciena (NYSE:CIEN) is down 10%, and Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER) is lower by 10%. All three are the day’s biggest S&P 500 decliners.

Risk Rotation Out of AI Hardware Today’s price action is a positioning story driven by rotation. Investors are rotating out of semiconductor and AI hardware names, with tech the day’s worst sector while healthcare, utilities, consumer defensive and energy trade higher. The iShares Semiconductor ETF is down roughly 5.4% while the iShares Expanded Tech-Software ETF is up about 0.7%. The 30-year Treasury hit a 19-year high today, compressing long-duration growth valuations.

Sentiment also cooled after Anthropic disclosed a $65 billion annualized revenue run rate at the end of July, below whisper numbers, and the WSJ flagged roughly $3 trillion of off-balance-sheet AI commitments across nine top tech names. Add in a soft reaction to Fabrinet’s fiscal Q1 2027 guide of $1.375 billion to $1.425 billion, and optics/networking took collateral damage.

Coherent (COHR) Coherent supplies optical transceivers and photonics into the AI datacenter buildout, and the picks-and-shovels suppliers behind that spend are exactly what we profiled in a free report on seven AI infrastructure names that aren’t chipmakers, here. It has been one of the market’s biggest winners, up 276% over the past year and 90% year to date. Q4 FY26 results on August 12 beat, with adjusted EPS of $1.74 versus $1.62 expected and revenue of $2.05 billion, up 33.7% year over year, as detailed in the company’s 8-K filing with the SEC.

That leaves a rich setup: trailing P/E of 79x and forward P/E of 32x. Generally, when stocks rotate out of risk, it’s the pricest names that take the nastiest dives. As you’ll see, Coherent, Teradyne, and Ciena all fit a very similar valuation profile.

Analysts remain constructive, with an average target of $411 and 78% bullish sentiment. A stock this stretched can absolutely deliver a 10%+ session on rotation days. Coherent shares have whipsawed around the past week on a combination of earnings, supply chain chatter, and investor enthusiasm around optics.

Teradyne (TER) Teradyne makes semiconductor test equipment, with roughly 70% of revenue tied to AI. The move follows an extraordinary run: up 21% in the past week, 37% in the past month, 129% year to date and 306% over one year. Q2 FY26 posted July 29 delivered revenue of $1.33 billion, up 103.9% year over year. Valuation carries the weight: trailing P/E of 57x, forward P/E of 45x. The Street’s consensus target sits at $450, and 76% of analysts rate it bullish.

Once again, there’s little news about Teradyne itself today, but its a company with a stretched valuation that relies on massive growth from AI in the years ahead. So, if investors are selling off the sector on fears over the size of off-balance sheet obligations, Teradyne is a first company to exit portfolios.

Ciena (CIEN) Ciena sells optical networking gear into hyperscaler datacenter interconnect. Shares are up 15% in the past week, 90% year to date, and 390% over the past year. Q2 FY26 on June 4 beat and management raised the full-year guide, with cloud providers now 46% of revenue and up 70% year over year.

Trailing P/E is 143x, though the forward P/E drops to 52x. The consensus target of $560 implies meaningful upside from here, and 13 buy or strong-buy ratings back the setup. Once again, on rotation days, the highest-multiple names bleed first.

Keep the Long-Term Picture in Mind While each of these stocks saw large sell-offs today, every single one is up massively year-to-date and across the past couple years. Few stocks that appreciate do so without elevated volatility. If you’re a believer in the long-term buildout of AI, days like today should do little to impact your conviction.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Key Takeaways Ciena's backlog rose over $600M sequentially to $7.7B, boosting visibility into 2027 revenue.About $6.4B of the backlog is hardware, with roughly 80% due for delivery over the next 12 months.CIEN raised fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $6.3B plus minus $100M, implying about 32% growth at the midpoint. Ciena Corporation (CIEN - Free Report) is witnessing strong demand and a growing backlog, which is providing increased visibility into future revenue. In the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Ciena’s backlog increased by more than $600 million sequentially to $7.7 billion, and the company expects it to exit fiscal 2026 at an even higher level. On the last earnings call, management highlighted that the combination of robust order flows, customer collaboration, a growing services business and high-quality backlog provides an excellent view for fiscal 2027. Importantly, about $6.4 billion of the backlog is hardware, with roughly 80% expected to be delivered over the next 12 months, supporting confidence in how the backlog can translate into revenue.

Looking ahead, Ciena expects demand to remain strong as hyperscalers continue expanding capital expenditures into fiscal 2027 and beyond, with a larger share of spending expected to be directed toward network infrastructure. Service providers are also reinvesting in optical infrastructure, while managed optical fiber networks are creating additional opportunities. Ciena expects these service-provider opportunities to be multiyear and durable.
At the same time, AI-driven requirements for high-capacity, low-latency connectivity are supporting demand across traditional WAN markets and data center-related applications.

New product deployments could further support revenue growth. Ciena’s RLS Hyper-Rail platform has secured its first multi-rail order from a leading hyperscaler, with the deployment expected to begin in fiscal 2027. Management said similar engagements with major hyperscalers and service providers are progressing well, with opportunities expected to provide linear growth over the next few years. Hyper-Rail is also expected to generate a meaningful revenue increase in fiscal 2027.

Ciena expects DCOM to remain a multiyear application, while its Nubis portfolio and other interconnect opportunities are positioned for growth in the coming years. With backlog expected to continue increasing, ongoing customer deployments and multiple product opportunities moving toward broader adoption, Ciena’s current order momentum provides a stronger foundation for revenue visibility into fiscal 2027.

For third-quarter fiscal 2026, management expects revenues of $1.625 billion (+/- $50 million). The company also raised its fiscal 2026 revenue outlook to $6.3 billion (+/-$100 million), representing roughly 32% year-over-year growth at the midpoint.

Taking a Look at CIEN’s CompetitorsArista Networks (ANET - Free Report) is well-positioned as cloud, AI and enterprise customers upgrade high-speed Ethernet networks. Demand spans AI fabrics, core data centers, campus and routing, aided by a stronger supply chain and deeper software automation. New AI fabric platforms, including liquid-cooling options and scale-across capabilities, support next-generation AI clusters, while campus recognition shows traction beyond hyperscale cloud. For the third quarter of 2026, management expects revenues to be approximately $3.3 billion, driven by healthy growth momentum and solid demand trends.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO - Free Report) is seeing broad-based demand, with third-quarter fiscal 2026 revenue of $15.8 billion up 12% year over year. Total product orders rose 35% and networking product orders grew more than 50%, helped by a campus refresh and data center switching orders up more than 40%. For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, the company expects revenues of $16.7 billion to $16.9 billion. For fiscal 2026, management raised its outlook to revenue of $62.8 billion to $63.0 billion. Cisco also announced a restructuring plan to reallocate resources toward silicon, optics, security and AI, and expects up to $1 billion of pretax charges, including roughly $450 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, with the remainder in fiscal 2027.

CIEN Price Performance, Valuation and EstimatesShares of CIEN have surged 387.2% in the past year compared with the Communications - Components industry’s growth of 222.1%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

CIEN trades at a forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 56.63, above the industry’s 41.51.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CIEN’s earnings for fiscal 2026 has remained unchanged over the past 60 days.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

CIEN currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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SummaryCiena is upgraded to Buy as growth-adjusted valuations now present an attractive entry, following a ~30% pullback from prior highs.CIEN’s Q2 fundamentals show accelerating revenue growth (~40% YoY), robust AI-driven demand, and resilient gross margins despite input cost pressures.Operating leverage is improving, with operating margins at ~19.5%—double last year’s levels and above guidance, supported by a diversified revenue mix.CIEN offers a defensive, less cyclical play on optical photonics with a strong backlog, AI tailwinds, and valuation support, mitigating capex and multiple compression risks. Images By Tang Ming Tung/DigitalVision via Getty Images

In May, somewhere near the peak of the AI infrastructure trade, I was a Hold on Ciena (CIEN) when it was trading close to ~$600, primarily because of the price

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

Ciena Corporation is positioned as a leading AI networking solution provider, driven by innovations like Hyper-Rail photonics and AI-driven automation. CIEN's Networking Platforms segment delivered $1.27B in Q2'26 revenue (81.1% of total), with Hyper-Rail photonic already receiving its first hyperscaler order. I rate CIEN a Buy, projecting a 47.4% price upside to $607.90, supported by strong execution, multi-year visibility, and robust backlog growth.

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Key Takeaways Ciena provides the critical optical networking required to connect distributed data center clusters.Wall Street expects CIEN EPS to grow more than 100% in 2026.The risk/reward is favorable as shares retreat to the 200-day moving average. Ciena Company OverviewZacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock Ciena Corporation ((CIEN - Free Report) ) is a leading provider of optical networking equipment, software, and services. Ciena is best known for its optical networking solutions, which use light signals overh fiber-optic cables to transmit data across vast distances at the speed of light. Simply put, Ciena serves as the ‘plumbing’ of the digital world, building the high-tech pipes, switches, and software that move massive amounts of data across the internet. The company manufactures the essential hardware and software for numerous big tech and telecom carriers that help deliver internet service to end users.

Ciena Benefits from the AI RevolutionAlready, the artificial intelligence buildout is the largest industrial buildout in history (by spending). That said, the latest earnings reports from big tech companies prove that the trend of mind-boggling AI spending is still accelerating. Amazon ((AMZN - Free Report) ), Alphabet ((GOOGL - Free Report) ), Microsoft ((MSFT - Free Report) ), and Meta Platforms ((META - Free Report) ) spent a combined $165 billion on CAPEX in Q2 (an 87% year-over-year increase). Additionally, several of these companies upped forward CAPEX guidance.

Image Source: Creative Planning @CharlieBilello

That’s good news for Ciena. While NVIDIA ((NVDA - Free Report) ) GPUs serve as the computational engines for training and running AI models, Ciena builds the pipes that move the data. As AI models expand, single data centers cannot house and power all the compute under one roof. Instead, AI infrastructure is transforming into “AI” factories scattered in different locations. Without high-performance optical networks like Ciena, NVDA GPU clusters sit inactive, waiting for more data.

CIEN: AI-Driven Growth & BacklogCiena is witnessing encouraging growth trends amid higher network traffic and bandwidth consumption across cloud and service provider environments. Customers are prioritizing investments in network infrastructure to support AI model training, data ingestion, and inference workloads. The latest Zacks Consensus Analyst Estimates project that CIEN’s annual EPS will jump triple digits in 2026 and 47% in 2027. Meanwhile, the company sports a record backlog, providing investors with multi-year growth visibility and confidence.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

CIEN Successfully Tests 200-day MACIEN shares have finally retreated after a massive multi-year advance. Last week, the stock bounced off the 200-day moving average, signaling renewed demand.

Image Source: TradingView

Bottom Line

As hyperscalers scale out distributed AI factories, high-speed optical networking infrastructure becomes a vital link that prevents high-cost GPU clusters from going idle. With triple digit EPS growth on the horizon and a record backlog, CIEN shares are poised to rally.

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jul 27th, 2026

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN – Free Report) by 42.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,507 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,289 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in Ciena were worth $1,750,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CIEN. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Ciena by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 31,161 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 3,156 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ciena by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 445,359 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $104,156,000 after buying an additional 155,712 shares during the period. FengHe Fund Management Pte. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ciena by 164.0% in the 4th quarter. FengHe Fund Management Pte. Ltd. now owns 660,988 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $154,585,000 after acquiring an additional 410,588 shares during the last quarter. TKG Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ciena in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,244,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Ciena by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 413,332 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $160,468,000 after acquiring an additional 26,900 shares during the last quarter. 91.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ciena Stock Performance Ciena stock opened at $389.93 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $477.15 and a 200-day moving average of $410.54. The firm has a market cap of $55.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 129.98 and a beta of 1.27. Ciena Corporation has a 1-year low of $84.41 and a 1-year high of $637.51.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.18. Ciena had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 7.87%.The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.42 earnings per share. Ciena’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, CFO Marc D. Graff sold 126 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total value of $58,741.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 126,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,186,421. This trade represents a 0.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gary B. Smith sold 2,952 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.83, for a total value of $1,383,986.16. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 254,886 shares in the company, valued at $119,498,203.38. This trade represents a 1.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,627 shares of company stock worth $10,974,985. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In CIEN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $615.00 price target on Ciena in a research report on Friday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Ciena from $380.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Ciena in a research report on Friday, May 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $416.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup increased their price objective on Ciena from $345.00 to $658.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Ciena from $285.00 to $508.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $530.56.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on CIEN

Ciena Company Profile (Free Report)

Ciena Corporation (NYSE: CIEN) is a global supplier of telecommunications networking equipment, software and services. The company develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms that enable service providers, cloud operators and large enterprises to build, manage and scale their networks. Ciena’s product portfolio includes coherent optical solutions, packet networking platforms and a suite of network automation software designed to optimize bandwidth, reduce latency and simplify network operations.

In addition to hardware offerings, Ciena provides professional services and support, including network design, implementation and ongoing maintenance.

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Posted by Defense World Staff on Jul 24th, 2026

Atika Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN – Free Report) by 27.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 43,651 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 16,349 shares during the quarter. Ciena accounts for 2.1% of Atika Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Atika Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ciena were worth $16,947,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CIEN. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Ciena by 635.7% in the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 103 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ciena by 71.0% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 106 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ciena by 85.5% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 141 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ciena by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 154 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in Ciena in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth CIEN has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ciena from $372.00 to $607.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ciena from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Argus set a $650.00 target price on shares of Ciena in a report on Friday, June 5th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ciena from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Ciena from $345.00 to $658.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $530.56.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Ciena

Ciena Stock Up 2.3% Shares of NYSE:CIEN opened at $406.37 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $57.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 135.46 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $480.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $409.42. Ciena Corporation has a 12-month low of $84.41 and a 12-month high of $637.51.

Ciena (NYSE:CIEN – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.18. Ciena had a net margin of 7.87% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Ciena Corporation will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling In related news, CFO Marc D. Graff sold 126 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $466.20, for a total value of $58,741.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 126,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,186,421. This trade represents a 0.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Joseph Cumello sold 1,586 shares of Ciena stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.33, for a total value of $739,599.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 42,872 shares in the company, valued at $19,992,499.76. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their position. 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. Insiders have sold 21,627 shares of company stock worth $10,974,985 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Ciena Profile (Free Report)

Ciena Corporation (NYSE: CIEN) is a global supplier of telecommunications networking equipment, software and services. The company develops high-capacity optical transport systems and packet-optical platforms that enable service providers, cloud operators and large enterprises to build, manage and scale their networks. Ciena’s product portfolio includes coherent optical solutions, packet networking platforms and a suite of network automation software designed to optimize bandwidth, reduce latency and simplify network operations.

In addition to hardware offerings, Ciena provides professional services and support, including network design, implementation and ongoing maintenance.

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