Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Stock Price Up 6.4% - Here's Why

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) shares rose 6.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $74.46 and last traded at $72.55. Approximately 6,492,491 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 28% from the average daily volume of 9,027,591 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.17.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Arista Networks from $118.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Arista Networks in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Arista Networks from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $108.50.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $88.74 and a 200 day moving average of $100.12. The firm has a market cap of $91.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.30.

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Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. Arista Networks had a return on equity of 29.91% and a net margin of 40.72%. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.90 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Arista Networks

In related news, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 138,351 shares of Arista Networks stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.88, for a total value of $12,988,391.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 92,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,697,137.08. The trade was a 59.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kelly Bodnar Battles sold 1,488 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.13, for a total transaction of $159,409.44. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $870,752.64. This represents a 15.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 411,031 shares of company stock valued at $39,364,943. Corporate insiders own 3.54% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arista Networks

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arista Networks by 35.0% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 135 shares of the technology company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Caitlin John LLC raised its position in shares of Arista Networks by 174.7% during the 4th quarter. Caitlin John LLC now owns 239 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its position in shares of Arista Networks by 335.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 248 shares of the technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. New Millennium Group LLC increased its holdings in Arista Networks by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. New Millennium Group LLC now owns 260 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in Arista Networks by 381.5% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 260 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. 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.