Mike Cintolo chose Ciena (CIEN) as a favorite speculative idea for 2019 in his growth oriented advisory service Cabot Top Ten Trader. The stock has since risen 21%. Here's his latest update on the tech firm.

Ciena (CIEN) certainly had the look of an early leader of the new bull phase back in January, as it held up well during the fourth quarter debacle and was one of the first growth stocks to hit new highs in 2019.

And it did get off to a good start, rising as high as 45 in early March before the selling set in. Why did the stock fall? For no real reason when it came to Ciena — Q4 results were solid and analyst earnings estimates never budged.

They currently are looking for a 50% bump this year and a 23% gain in 2020. But the networking sector as a whole got hit, as did many 5G stocks.

Throw in fears of a slowing economy and uncertainty from the U.S.-China trade war and the stock slipped to 33 during the market’s May correction.

But it looks like the original thesis is now back on track — Ciena soared back to new highs after a fantastic Q1 report in early June, and ironically, it appears the trade war is actually helping the company, as the blacklisting of Huawei and some issues with one of Ciena’s competitors is boosting business.

To be fair, CIEN probably isn’t going to be the powerful leading stock we thought early in the year, but having already ridden through a correction and some uncertainties, the path of least resistance remains up. We’re positive on this name in the months ahead.

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