Ciena falls hard

So far, the first quarter of 2002 hasn’t proved much friendlier for Ciena than its last quarter. Today, company officials detailed beliefs that the quarter will fall short of previous guidance. Additionally the company will close a Maryland long-haul transport manufacturing facility and cut 400 employees, or 12% of its work force.

Ciena expects to report a loss before charges of $0.16 to $0.22 per share with revenues of around $160 million. That number sharply contrasts First Call’s prediction of $227.14 million in revenue for the quarter with a loss before items of $0.11.

And although the numbers don’t look good for Ciena, the company is surely not alone as the industry swirls with bankruptcies and heavy losses. According to Ciena president and CEO Gary Smith, much of the turmoil at Ciena is attributable to changes in customer orders and further capex reductions.

“We don’t believe we are losing business to competition,” Smith said.

Like other telecom executives, Smith said he isn’t predicting improvement anytime soon but doesn’t believe the market will deteriorate any further.

So far today, Ciena’s stock price has dropped $0.50 to $9.62.