Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Upgraded by KeyCorp to Strong-Buy Rating

KeyCorp upgraded shares of Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Arista Networks from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. UBS Group raised shares of Arista Networks from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $112.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush started coverage on Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Arista Networks from $97.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $108.87.

Arista Networks Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Arista Networks stock opened at $96.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $120.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.76, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.37. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $88.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.73. Arista Networks has a 1-year low of $59.43 and a 1-year high of $133.58.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The technology company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.06. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 40.72%. The business had revenue of $2 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 27.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Arista Networks will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arista Networks announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 6th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arista Networks

In other Arista Networks news, Director Kelly Bodnar Battles sold 1,492 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.49, for a total value of $102,187.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $512,305.20. This represents a 16.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles H. Giancarlo sold 8,000 shares of Arista Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.58, for a total transaction of $708,640.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 131,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,673,426.72. This represents a 5.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 161,690 shares of company stock worth $14,525,085. Corporate insiders own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. HighMark Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 179.7% in the 1st quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 358 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in Arista Networks by 381.5% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 260 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in Arista Networks by 415.7% in the fourth quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 263 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Arista Networks during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Arista Networks during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.47% of the company’s stock.

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.