Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) Sets New 1-Year High at $39.79

Juniper Networks, Inc. (NYSE:JNPR)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $39.79 and last traded at $38.96, with a volume of 943677 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Argus upgraded Juniper Networks from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Juniper Networks in a report on Monday, September 16th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Juniper Networks in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Juniper Networks in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Juniper Networks from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Juniper Networks currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.67.

Juniper Networks Trading Down 0.2 %

The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.49 and its 200-day moving average is $36.82. The firm has a market cap of $12.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.28 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.69.

Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The network equipment provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.13). Juniper Networks had a net margin of 4.58% and a return on equity of 8.02%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Juniper Networks, Inc. will post 0.97 EPS for the current year.

Juniper Networks Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Juniper Networks’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 127.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Kenneth Bradley Miller sold 28,669 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.53, for a total value of $1,047,278.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 56,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,049,588.71. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JNPR. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Juniper Networks by 2,069.4% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 781 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Juniper Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in Juniper Networks during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Juniper Networks during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Juniper Networks in the first quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 91.95% of the company’s stock.

About Juniper Networks

Juniper Networks, Inc designs, develops, and sells network products and services worldwide. The company offers routing products, such as ACX series universal access routers to deploy high-bandwidth services; MX series Ethernet routers that function as a universal edge platform; PTX series packet transport routers; wide-area network SDN controllers; and session smart routers.