CIENA (Nasdaq: CIEN) reported earnings on Aug. 30. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended July 31 (Q3), CIENA met expectations on revenues and missed expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded and GAAP loss per share contracted.

Gross margins dropped, operating margins dropped, net margins increased.

Revenue details
 CIENA reported revenue of $474.1 million. The 21 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ looked for revenue of $474.2 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 8.9% higher than the prior-year quarter's $435.3 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at -$0.04. The 22 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated -$0.02 per share. GAAP EPS were -$0.30 for Q3 against -$0.33 per share for the prior-year quarter.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 38.2%, 470 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was -2.7%, 40 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was -6.3%, 90 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $468.9 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is -$0.05.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $1.84 billion. The average EPS estimate is -$0.22.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a two-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 470 members out of 550 rating the stock outperform, and 80 members rating it underperform. Among 117 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 94 give CIENA a green thumbs-up, and 23 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on CIENA is outperform, with an average price target of $17.49.

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