Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Strong-Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR - Free Report) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on JNPR. 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 research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price target on Juniper Networks from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Argus downgraded Juniper Networks from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.80.

Juniper Networks Price Performance

Shares of JNPR traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $36.10. 1,880,279 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,115,834. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Juniper Networks has a fifty-two week low of $33.72 and a fifty-two week high of $39.79. The company has a market cap of $12.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's fifty day moving average is $36.46 and its 200 day moving average is $37.46.

Remove Ads

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.13). Juniper Networks had a return on equity of 7.57% and a net margin of 5.67%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Juniper Networks will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Juniper Networks Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Juniper Networks's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 102.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Juniper Networks news, COO Manoj Leelanivas sold 30,978 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.02, for a total transaction of $1,115,827.56. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 94,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,413,651.42. The trade was a 24.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.28% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Juniper Networks

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Juniper Networks during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Juniper Networks by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 605 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the period. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its holdings in Juniper Networks by 84.7% in the third quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 1,830 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 839 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.95% of the company's stock.

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.