Ciena's Stock Soars After Profit, Sales Beats Expectations

Shares of Ciena Corp. soared 13% in premarket trade Thursday, after the optical networking company reported fiscal second-quarter profit and sales that beat expectations. For the quarter ended April 30, earnings fell to $14.0 million, or 10 cents a share, from $20.7 million, or 17 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 34 cents, above the FactSet consensus of 27 cents. Revenue rose 3.1% to $640.7 million from $621.6 million, beating the FactSet consensus of $630.8 million. For the current quarter, the company expects revenue in the range of $655 million to $685 million, surrounding the FactSet consensus of $668 million. "This quarter's strong financial performance is a result of the investments we've made to diversify our business, in particular the expansion of our packet business and our momentum in key geographies," said Chief Executive Gary Smith. The stock has tumbled 14% year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.7%.