Ciena management check
CIEN · Information Technology · Communications Equipment · CEO Gary B Smith
Filings as of
5 good · 1 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $482, against $271 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.99 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Flag
What does the CEO cost owners?
15.0% of net income$18.5m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $123.3m of net income.
- Watch
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 4.2 years of payThe CEO holds 225,455 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 4.2 years of pay. 10 insiders sold $35.6m in the last six months and none bought. 40 of 42 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -1.4% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 3.9% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
6 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Mr. Smith. 6 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Information Technology.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 33 | |
| Pay for performance | 100 | 87 | |
| CEO cost | 0 | 35 | |
| Skin in the game | 46 | 47 | |
| Dilution | 67 | 56 | |
| Stable leadership | 95 | 85 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Communications Equipment, by management score. Ciena is 18th of 73 in its sector.
- 139CIENCiena73
- 249ANETArista Networks64
- 260CSCOCisco64
- 304MSIMotorola Solutions61
- 349LITELumentum58
- 364FFIVF5, Inc.57
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed February 12, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mr. Smith | $18.5m | $94.5m | $5.5m | $482 | $271 | $123.3m |
| 2024 | — | $14.1m | $23.2m | $3.5m | $162 | $163 | $84.0m |
| 2023 | — | $15.4m | $10.3m | $4.0m | $104 | $116 | $254.8m |
| 2022 | — | $12.0m | $8.2m | $3.2m | $122 | $159 | $152.9m |
| 2021 | — | $11.5m | $22.4m | $3.1m | $138 | $151 | $500.2m |
The board says pay is tied most to Revenue. Its other key measures: Revenue (Company Selected Measure), Adjusted Operating Income, Aggregate Sales Orders, Adjusted EPS, Total Stockholder Return, Gross Margin.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Gary B Smith (President & CEO) held 225,455 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Oct 15, 2026, roughly $78.5m at that filing's price.
10 insiders sold $35.6m in the last six months and none bought. 40 of 42 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- SoldGary B SmithPresident & CEO · 10b5-1 plan$15.5mOct 15, 2026
- SoldDavid M RothensteinEVP & Chief Strategy Officer · 10b5-1 plan$6.4mOct 15, 2026
- SoldBrodie GageEVP & Chief Product & Tech · 10b5-1 plan$3.1mOct 15, 2026
- SoldMarc D. GraffEVP & Chief Financial Officer · 10b5-1 plan$2.3mOct 1, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Dec 4, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 18, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 12, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 4, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 23, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Mar 26, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 3, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Aug 31, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 24, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Mar 31, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $1.4bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 128% of net income, and $660.9m of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $3.6bn | $3.6bn | $4.4bn | $4.0bn | $4.8bn |
| Net income | $500.2m | $152.9m | $254.8m | $84.0m | $123.3m |
| Stock-based pay | $84.3m | $105.1m | $130.5m | $156.4m | $184.5m |
| Buybacks | $91.3m | $500.8m | $242.2m | $254.5m | $334.5m |
| Dividends | — | — | — | — | — |
| Diluted shares | 157m | 152m | 149m | 146m | 145m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.