Arista Networks’ (ANET) Buy Rating Reiterated at Rosenblatt Securities

Rosenblatt Securities restated their buy rating on shares of Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $280.00 target price on the technology company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective (down from $255.00) on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Arista Networks in a research report on Monday, August 31st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $220.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial upped their target price on Arista Networks from $175.00 to $234.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane raised Arista Networks to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $240.24.

Arista Networks Trading Up 7.2%

Shares of Arista Networks stock traded up $11.54 on Wednesday, hitting $170.70. 11,977,293 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,207,998. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $192.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.70. The company has a market cap of $215.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.61. Arista Networks has a 12-month low of $114.52 and a 12-month high of $217.41.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The technology company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. Arista Networks had a net margin of 38.37% and a return on equity of 30.65%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 58.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.75 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Arista Networks will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Arista Networks

In related news, major shareholder Andreas Bechtolsheim sold 300,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.95, for a total transaction of $59,685,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 180,543,048 shares in the company, valued at $35,919,039,399.60. This trade represents a 0.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Kenneth Duda sold 26,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.42, for a total value of $4,820,920.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 452,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $83,884,008. The trade was a 5.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,380,998 shares of company stock worth $482,687,801. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Arista Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 159.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 121,303,125 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,606,975,000 after buying an additional 74,541,134 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 34.6% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,725,196 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,712,788,000 after acquiring an additional 2,497,275 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 199.0% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,630,196 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,635,978,000 after purchasing an additional 6,409,612 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 4.3% during the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 9,357,496 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,589,651,000 after purchasing an additional 388,354 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Arista Networks by 5.9% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,440,963 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,433,951,000 after purchasing an additional 470,451 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.47% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Arista Networks

Here are the key news stories impacting Arista Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Arista reported third-quarter revenue of $3.66 billion, up 58.5% year over year and above estimates, while EPS of $1.20 also beat expectations. The company raised its outlook, citing demand for AI data-center networking, Ethernet adoption, and growth across hyperscale and enterprise customers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support offers another tailwind: Melius Research initiated coverage with a “strong-buy” rating, while other recent reports cited buy ratings and bullish price targets. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: The recent selloff has left investors debating whether the pullback creates a buying opportunity. ANET has declined substantially over the past month despite its strong results, leaving sentiment divided. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and customer concentration remain risks: Arista’s premium forward earnings multiple leaves less room for disappointment, while reliance on a limited number of large customers could make growth more vulnerable to spending changes. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Shares have also faced pressure from a broader AI-infrastructure stock selloff and reported insider sales. Those sales included transactions under pre-arranged trading plans, but can still add to near-term investor caution. Read More.

Arista Networks Company Profile

Arista Networks, Inc develops software-driven networking products for large data centers, cloud environments, AI workloads, and enterprise campuses. Its offerings include Ethernet switches and routers, along with software and services for managing, monitoring, and securing networks.

The company’s software portfolio includes its Extensible Operating System (EOS), which runs across its networking platforms, and CloudVision, a platform for network automation and management. Arista’s products are used by cloud providers, businesses, and other organizations to connect and manage computing infrastructure.

Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Arista serves customers worldwide.