Citi Sees 107% Upside In Ciena After Post-Earnings Selloff

According to CNBC, Citi said Ciena's post-earnings decline this week creates a buying opportunity and kept a buy rating on the network technology stock. The bank set a $658 price target, implying 107% upside from Thursday's close, and analyst Atif Malik said Ciena's preliminary expectation for 30% year-over-year growth is a floor that should rise as supply improves. Malik also said the company has leadership in optical transport and that gradually improving telco and cable markets could support a re-rating in growth. Ciena shares fell 10% on Thursday after the company issued a weaker-than-expected revenue outlook for its current fiscal year and were down about 41% over the past three months. The company said it expects fiscal-year revenue of $6.42 billion, plus or minus $50 million, for the year ending October, compared with FactSet consensus of $6.34 billion. Citi said cloud spending should remain healthy and that AI-related data center interconnect demand could add to growth. Of the 20 analysts covering Ciena, 14 rate the stock buy or strong buy, according to LSEG data.