Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Trading Down 2.1% on Insider Selling

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET)’s share price fell 2.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $83.60 and last traded at $85.95. 2,617,032 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 10,777,346 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.82.

Specifically, Director Charles H. Giancarlo sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.03, for a total value of $712,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 147,784 shares in the company, valued at $13,157,209.52. This trade represents a 5.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marc Taxay sold 51,848 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.59, for a total transaction of $4,593,214.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, insider John F. Mccool sold 17,433 shares of Arista Networks stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.57, for a total transaction of $1,683,504.81. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ANET shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Arista Networks from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Arista Networks from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Arista Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Arista Networks from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $112.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $114.00.

Arista Networks Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $106.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $109.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.02.

Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) 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. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.90 billion. Arista Networks had a net margin of 40.72% and a return on equity of 29.91%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Arista Networks, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitlin John LLC grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Arista Networks by 300.0% during the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 264 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its stake in shares of Arista Networks by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 264 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC increased its position in shares of Arista Networks by 300.0% during the 4th 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. Institutional investors own 82.47% of the company’s stock.

About Arista Networks

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.