Market Performance - Stocks experienced continued weakness during light trading on New Year's Eve, with major averages showing notable declines [1] - The Dow fell by 303.77 points (0.6%) to 48,063.29, the Nasdaq decreased by 177.09 points (0.8%) to 23,241.99, and the S&P 500 dropped by 50.74 points (0.7%) to 6,845.50 [1] - This marked the fourth consecutive session of declines, following record closing highs for the Dow and S&P 500 [2] Yearly Gains - Despite recent pullbacks, major averages posted strong annual gains, with the Nasdaq up 20.4%, the S&P 500 up 16.4%, and the Dow up 13.0% for the year [3] Economic Indicators - The Labor Department reported a decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits, with initial jobless claims falling to 199,000, down 16,000 from the previous week's revised level [4] - Economists had anticipated an increase in jobless claims to 220,000, indicating a stronger labor market than expected [4] Sector Performance - Biotechnology stocks performed poorly, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 1.9% [4] - Gold stocks also showed considerable weakness, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index falling by 1.4% due to a slump in gold prices [5] - Other sectors, including computer hardware, brokerage, networking, and semiconductors, experienced notable declines [5] International Markets - In overseas trading, stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region showed mixed performance, with China's Shanghai Composite Index up by 0.1% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index down by 0.9% [6] - European stocks also moved modestly lower, with the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index down by 0.1% and the French CAC 40 Index slipping by 0.2% [6] Bond Market - Treasuries declined during the session, leading to a rise in the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which increased by 3.3 basis points to 4.163% [7]

Group 1 - EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) is identified as a high growth large cap stock, with Citi analyst Michael Rollins raising the price target from $87 to $111 while maintaining a "Neutral" rating [1] - UBS also updated its price target for EchoStar, reducing it from $128 to $125, while keeping a "Neutral" rating [2] - Following the sale of 75% to 80% of its spectrum portfolio for approximately $43 billion, EchoStar has transitioned from a wireless operator to an investment company, leading to a valuation shift that assigns $11 billion to the remaining spectrum [3] Group 2 - The 3% stake in SpaceX is now implied to be worth around $22 billion, or roughly $65 per share, based on a private valuation of SpaceX at $800 billion, indicating significant upside potential compared to previous valuations [3] - EchoStar Corporation provides networking technologies and services, but there are suggestions that certain AI stocks may offer greater upside potential with less downside risk [4]

Group 1 - Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is considered one of the most undervalued tech giants, with a 'Buy' or equivalent rating from over half of analysts covering the stock, indicating a median one-year price target of $86.50, representing a 10.84% upside potential [1] - Morgan Stanley raised the price target for Cisco to $91 from $82 while maintaining an 'Overweight' rating, suggesting an upside potential of approximately 17% relative to the current price [2] - Cisco announced that shareholders approved an amended version of the company's 2005 Stock Incentive Plan, increasing the number of authorized shares by 57,490,000 [4] Group 2 - Analysts suggest that the AI trade has expanded beyond semiconductor names, favoring infrastructure names, particularly in the optical sector, which could benefit Cisco [2] - There is a note of caution that investors may need to be more selective for full-year returns in the optical sector, indicating a potential shift in investment strategy [3]

Core Insights - TCW Concentrated Large Cap Growth Fund reported a return of +4.11% in Q3 2025, underperforming the Russell 1000 Growth Index which returned +10.51% [1] - The fund highlighted Arista Networks, Inc. as a key investment, noting its strong performance and market position [2][3] Fund Performance - The fund's performance in Q3 2025 was influenced by optimism around AI investments and positive corporate earnings [1] - The fund's I share return of +4.11% was significantly lower than the Russell 1000 Growth Index's +10.51% return [1] Company Overview: Arista Networks, Inc. - Arista Networks, Inc. is a technology company specializing in data-driven, client-to-cloud networking solutions [2] - The company reported a revenue of $2.3 billion in Q3 2025, reflecting a year-over-year increase of 27.5% [4] - Arista's stock closed at $130.77 per share on December 24, 2025, with a market capitalization of $164.677 billion [2] Investment Thesis on Arista Networks, Inc. - The company is positioned well in the market due to its product advantages such as speed, scalability, and high reliability [3] - Arista's EOS platform is designed to meet the needs of large-scale cloud companies and enterprises, enhancing its competitive edge [3] - Despite its strong fundamentals, some analysts suggest that other AI stocks may offer greater upside potential [4] Hedge Fund Interest - As of the end of Q3 2025, 92 hedge fund portfolios held Arista Networks, an increase from 81 in the previous quarter [4]

Key Takeaways Arista partners with Fortinet to offer a secure, high-performance AI data center solution.The solution merges Arista's low-latency networking with Fortinet's hardware-accelerated security.Arista's R4 Series routers enhance AI workloads with speed, efficiency, and integrated security.Arista Networks, Inc. ((ANET) partnered with Fortinet, Inc. ((FTNT) to provide a Secure AI Data Center Solution, designed to help organizations deploy and scale high-performance, secure AI infrastructure efficientl ...

The Americas accounted for over 80% of revenue, with international markets accounting for approximately 20%. Management stressed that the scale of AI-driven network demand is unparalleled, with customers moving large amounts of data over increasingly complex, multi-planar architectures. Arista's success is built around its EtherLink portfolio, which offers a single point of network control for automation, security, traffic engineering, and telemetry. Arista's networks are designed to improve the efficiency ...

Core Viewpoint - Cisco Systems, Inc. is positioned to benefit from the growing demand for AI infrastructure, with a notable increase in its price target by Morgan Stanley to $91, reflecting confidence in its future performance [2]. Group 1: Financial Performance - Cisco reported a 5% year-over-year revenue growth in fiscal 2025, achieving sales of $56.7 billion for the year ending July 26 [3]. - In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, Cisco's revenue rose by 8% to $14.9 billion, indicating a positive growth trend [3]. - For fiscal 2026, Cisco forecasts revenue between $60.2 billion and $61 billion, suggesting continued momentum [3]. Group 2: Product and Market Positioning - Cisco's networking capabilities are increasingly relevant in the context of artificial intelligence, particularly with the rise of agentic AI [2]. - The company is integrating its networking products, such as Nexus HyperFabric, with Nvidia's AI software to create infrastructure suited for AI workloads [2]. - Cisco is also expanding its security offerings with the Hypershield platform, which is described as an AI-native cybersecurity solution [2]. Group 3: Market Outlook - Morgan Stanley anticipates that the AI trade will extend beyond semiconductor stocks into infrastructure companies by 2025, benefiting Cisco [2]. - The analyst notes that investors may need to be more selective for full-year returns as market multiples evolve [2].

Arista Networks ( ANET ) has been a stock which has grown quite nicely throughout 2025. We saw share momentum on the back of AI tailwinds and data centre deals. However, since late October, the stock has pulled back a bit, downI hold a Master’s degree in Cell Biology and began my career working for several years as a lab technician in a drug discovery clinic, where I gained extensive hands-on experience in cell culture, assay development, and therapeutic research. That scientific foundation gave me an appre ...

Group 1 - Arista Networks (ANET) has experienced significant stock growth throughout 2025, driven by AI tailwinds and data center deals [1] - Since late October, the stock has seen a pullback, indicating a recent decline in share momentum [1] Group 2 - The focus of the analysis is on identifying promising biotechnology companies that innovate through unique mechanisms of action and first-in-class therapies [1] - The approach emphasizes evaluating the science behind drug candidates, the competitive landscape, clinical trial design, and potential market opportunities while balancing financial fundamentals and valuation [1]

Michael D. Capellas, a director at Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), sold 10,850 shares at $77.13 each, retaining 146,368 shares.Cisco disclosed a significant cybersecurity issue, CVE-2025-20393, affecting its AsyncOS software used in Secure Email Gateway and Web Manager.Despite the cybersecurity concerns, Cisco's stock price increased to $78.42, with a market capitalization of approximately $309.8 billion.Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), a leading technology company known for its networking hardware, so ...