New York, February 12, 2026, 18:53 EST — After-hours
- Arista Networks climbed in after-hours action as the company beat quarterly expectations and issued an upbeat outlook.
- The networking gear maker bumped up its full-year 2026 revenue growth target during its earnings call.
- AI data-center demand is in focus, but investors are also contending with pricier components and shrinking supply.
Arista Networks jumped roughly 13% after hours, erasing a 4% decline from earlier. Shares last changed hands at $153.33, recovering sharply from a $135.12 close.
That late swing is grabbing attention—Arista now serves as a quick proxy for AI data center investment, with networking gear taking on a role nearly as critical as the silicon itself. Traders are watching to gauge if demand is holding up, and if margins can withstand supply chain turbulence.
Earlier in the day, Arista shares slid amid a broader downturn in networking and hardware names, after Cisco’s sharp drop raised concerns about climbing memory expenses biting into margins. That weighed on Arista ahead of its own earnings release.
Arista reported a 28.9% jump in fourth-quarter revenue to $2.488 billion. Stripping out items like stock-based compensation, the company logged non-GAAP earnings of $0.82 a share. CFO Chantelle Breithaupt called out a “historic milestone” as quarterly net income topped $1 billion for the first time. Non-GAAP operating margin reached 47.5%. Arista Networks
Looking ahead, Arista is targeting first-quarter revenue in the neighborhood of $2.6 billion, with non-GAAP gross margins projected at roughly 62% to 63% and a non-GAAP operating margin around 46%. That revenue target tops the $2.45 billion analysts had predicted, based on LSEG data cited by Reuters.
During the conference call, management bumped up its full-year 2026 revenue forecast to around $11.25 billion, pointing to growth near 25%. According to the call transcript, the 2026 AI networking revenue target was also raised—to $3.25 billion from the earlier $2.75 billion figure.
Rosenblatt’s Mike Genovese, in comments ahead of the report, noted “a good chance the company can increase 2026 revenue guidance above 20%” with hyperscaler contracts stacking up, Investing.com reported. However, the same report pointed out that rising competition from white-box vendors and Nvidia remains a risk as AI Ethernet networking gains traction across the sector. Investing.com Australia
Still, costs remain a sticking point. CEO Jayshree Ullal called memory pricing “horrendous” on the call, highlighting the danger: margins could get pinched if component costs keep climbing and supply doesn’t loosen up—or if customers resist paying more. MarketScreener
The company dropped its earnings press release under Item 2.02, Results of Operations and Financial Condition, according to a Form 8-K filed Thursday.
Friday brings the regular session, giving investors their first shot at seeing if the after-hours swing sticks as volume returns. According to the company’s investor calendar, management is also on deck for Bernstein’s “What’s next in Tech” on Feb. 25 and set for the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom Conference March 3. Arista
