Aviva PLC Decreases Position in Juniper Networks, Inc. (NYSE:JNPR)

Aviva PLC lessened its stake in Juniper Networks, Inc. (NYSE:JNPR - Free Report) by 55.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 200,275 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after selling 253,603 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned 0.06% of Juniper Networks worth $7,500,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new position in Juniper Networks in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Juniper Networks by 47.8% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of Juniper Networks by 91.9% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,263 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Juniper Networks by 139.5% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,794 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 1,045 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Juniper Networks by 41.5% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,099 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. 91.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Manoj Leelanivas sold 30,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.02, for a total value of $1,115,827.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 94,771 shares in the company, valued at $3,413,651.42. This trade represents a 24.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Juniper Networks Stock Performance

Shares of JNPR stock traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $34.72. The company had a trading volume of 319,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,277,952. The stock has a market cap of $11.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.37, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $35.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.08. Juniper Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.42 and a 52-week high of $39.79.

Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The network equipment provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.13). Juniper Networks had a net margin of 5.67% and a return on equity of 7.57%. Research analysts anticipate that Juniper Networks, Inc. will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Juniper Networks Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Juniper Networks's dividend payout ratio is presently 102.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their target price on Juniper Networks from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Juniper Networks from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Juniper Networks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Argus downgraded Juniper Networks from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.80.

Juniper Networks Company Profile

Juniper Networks, Inc designs, develops, and sells network products and services worldwide. The company offers routing products, such as ACX series universal access routers to deploy high-bandwidth services; MX series Ethernet routers that function as a universal edge platform; PTX series packet transport routers; wide-area network SDN controllers; and session smart routers.