Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Shares Up 7.3% on Analyst Upgrade

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) shares rose 7.3% on Wednesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $275.00 to $285.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Arista Networks traded as high as $295.12 and last traded at $294.04. Approximately 3,552,341 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 43% from the average daily volume of 2,476,203 shares. The stock had previously closed at $273.99.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Arista Networks from $313.00 to $356.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $232.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Arista Networks from $297.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 87,418 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.81, for a total transaction of $24,373,012.58. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 17,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,929,639.61. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, SVP Kenneth Duda sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.31, for a total value of $5,686,200.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $922,301.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 87,418 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.81, for a total transaction of $24,373,012.58. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 17,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,929,639.61. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 337,054 shares of company stock worth $96,529,086 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arista Networks

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ANET. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Arista Networks by 30.0% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 5,245 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after purchasing an additional 1,211 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in Arista Networks by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 44,712 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $12,966,000 after buying an additional 1,903 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Arista Networks by 144.1% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 230,505 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $66,794,000 after acquiring an additional 136,063 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 41,070 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $11,909,000 after acquiring an additional 2,403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Arista Networks by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 2,443 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $708,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.47% of the company’s stock.

Arista Networks Stock Up 6.7 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $91.41 billion, a PE ratio of 44.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average is $279.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $251.25.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The technology company reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.38. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 35.62%. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arista Networks announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Arista Networks Company Profile

Arista Networks, Inc engages in the development, marketing, and sale of data-driven, client to cloud networking solutions for data center, campus, and routing environments in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific. Its cloud networking solutions consist of Extensible Operating System (EOS), a publish-subscribe state-sharing networking operating system offered in combination with a set of network applications.