Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) Shares Down 2.7% on Disappointing Earnings

Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) shares traded down 2.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $150.99 and last traded at $153.4070. 8,399,948 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 16% from the average session volume of 9,984,020 shares. The stock had previously closed at $157.59.

The technology company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. Arista Networks had a net margin of 40.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.5% on a year-over-year basis. Arista Networks has set its Q4 2025 guidance at EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $115.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Arista Networks in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Arista Networks from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arista Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.94.

Insider Activity at Arista Networks

In related news, insider Kenneth Duda sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.75, for a total value of $4,282,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,976 shares in the company, valued at $1,852,324. This represents a 69.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jayshree Ullal sold 1,247,688 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.53, for a total value of $185,319,098.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 5,383,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,567,735.71. This represents a 18.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 2,539,875 shares of company stock worth $368,457,081 over the last quarter. Insiders own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arista Networks

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Arista Networks by 0.4% in the third quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,509 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,697,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Arista Networks by 56.7% in the third quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 199 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in Arista Networks by 2.4% in the third quarter. Crown Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,175 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $463,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Arista Networks by 1.8% in the third quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 4,237 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stablepoint Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Arista Networks by 0.8% in the second quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 9,406 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. 82.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arista Networks Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $192.81 billion, a PE ratio of 60.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.47. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $146.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $118.69.

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.