11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now

6. Ciena Corp. (NYSE:CIEN)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 52

Ciena Corp. (NYSE:CIEN) is a network technology company that provides hardware, software, and services for various network operators. It focuses on the telecommunication industry and large cloud service providers. The company also uses AI, particularly through the Blue Planet and Navigator Network Control Suite, to transform customer support, network management, and service operations.

In Q1 2025, direct revenue from cloud providers constituted 32% of Ciena’s total revenue of $1.07 billion. The cloud provider segment drives growth for the company partly due to its connection to AI infrastructure. Notably, 5 cloud providers were among Ciena’s top 10 customers in Q1. The company’s WaveLogic 6 Extreme solution offers increased capacity and reduced space and power requirements. These are crucial for the massive scale of cloud data centers supporting AI.

In Q1, Ciena added 20 new customers for WaveLogic 6E. The WaveLogic 5 solution also continues to be a foundational technology, with over 160,000 modems shipped worldwide. It underpins the network backbones for the AI and cloud economy. Ciena saw a 2.9% year-over-year increase in revenue to $1.07 billion in Q1 2025 as it benefited from the recalibration of AI-driven network architecture deployments.

Diamond Hill Mid Cap Strategy stated the following regarding Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:

“On an individual holdings’ basis, top contributors to return in Q4 included Ciena Corporation (NYSE:CIEN) and WESCO. Networking systems company Ciena is benefiting from continued demand from cloud customers and stabilization from service providers, giving a boost to shares in the quarter.”