Ciena Stock Slides 10% Despite Record-Beating Q4 Results

Ciena's stock price dropped by 10% after the company reported record-beating Q4 results but provided in-line guidance for its next quarter. The decline is significant, as it extends a rough stretch for Ciena, which has now fallen by 18% over the past month.

The company's quarterly revenue was $1.67 billion, beating analysts' expectations of $1.63 billion. However, Ciena guided its Q4 revenue to $1.75 billion plus or minus $50 million, a midpoint that only aligns with the $1.7 billion analyst consensus.

This mismatch has led to a de-rating for Ciena's stock, which was up 51% this year through the prior close. In contrast, its peers Arista Networks and Cisco Systems are holding firm, with Arista's stock up 3% and Cisco's down just 0.1%. The divergence suggests that Ciena's specific guidance issue is a company-specific valuation reset, rather than a sector-wide problem.

Arista Networks' continued AI networking momentum has driven its stock up 42% year-to-date, with the company guiding fiscal 2027 revenue to $12.6 billion. Cisco Systems also reported strong results, booking $4 billion in AI infrastructure orders and guiding fiscal 2027 AI infrastructure revenue to $7.5 billion.