Thomas Weisel Downgrades Ciena, Slashes Price Target

Thomas Weisel Partners analyst Hasan Imam downgraded Ciena(CIEN Quote) to buy from strong buy and sharply reduced his six-month price target on the company in a series of moves that were based primarily on the market psychology surrounding the optical networker.

Imam, who slashed his price target to $45 from $85, wrote in a research note that near-term concerns about the company have little to do with Ciena's fundamentals, and the analyst said he still holds an "unflinching bullish stance" on the company. But he wrote that "it is becoming increasingly clear that investors, spooked by recent blow-ups of equipment vendors Nortel(NT Quote), Tellabs(TLAB Quote), Juniper(JNPR Quote) and Marconi(MONI Quote) are becoming increasingly skittish on Ciena, one of the last ones standing, and are no longer willing to reward the stock for near-term execution."

He added that there is no near-term catalyst in sight to propel Ciena's stock higher, save a sector-wide rally. Despite the recent troubles in the sector, Ciena has outperformed its peers, maintaining guidance "of +100% growth for FY01 and has delivered upside to expectations through 1H01," Imam wrote. ...