FBR Capital Markets Reiterates Underperform on Juniper Networks Ahead of 3Q13 Earnings Report

In a report published Monday, FBR Capital Markets analyst Scott Thompson reiterated an Underperform rating and $16.00 price target on Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR).

In the report, FBR Capital Markets noted, “Juniper is scheduled to report 3Q13 earnings Tuesday, Oct. 22 after the close, and to hold its earnings call at 5 p.m. EDT (877-407-8033). We expect the JNPR story to remain challenged, despite what we believe will be a strong quarter report. There does appear to be a substantial core routing upgrade developing in the service provider (SP) vertical. However, we expect competitive pressure from ALU could continue to rise, particularly in the core. Additionally, we expect current core upgrades will be more muted and less routing intensive than past cycles. Longer term, we believe Juniper could be challenged to transition away from its legacy core routing and switching business and toward a more optical and software-based revenue stream. While our 12-month view on the stock remains cautious, we raise our 3Q13 EPS estimate to $0.34, above the $0.31 consensus estimate. We are lowering our 4Q revenue estimates nearly 3% below consensus, driving our EPS estimate down to $0.34 for 4Q13. We continue to encourage investors to use any strength in shares to reduce exposure to JNPR.”

Juniper Networks closed on Friday at $20.82.