Arista Networks $ANET ( ▲ 4.79% ) surged in after-hours trading after delivering a fourth-quarter report that beat Wall Street on both profit and revenue, while also issuing upbeat guidance for the months ahead. The data center networking company posted adjusted earnings per share of $0.82, comfortably above the $0.76 analysts expected, alongside revenue of $2.49 billion versus forecasts of $2.38 billion.
Investors cheered not just the beat, but the signal that demand for high-performance networking gear remains strong as cloud providers and AI infrastructure builders continue expanding data centers. Shares jumped roughly 9% after the results dropped.
Margins that would make any CFO smile
Beyond top-line growth, Arista delivered profitability that exceeded its own expectations. Non-GAAP gross margin came in at 63.4%, above prior guidance of 62% to 63%, suggesting the company is maintaining strong pricing power even as hardware costs fluctuate.
Healthy margins are especially important in networking hardware, where competition can quickly erode profitability. Arista’s ability to outperform here signals efficient operations and sustained demand for its high-end switches and routing platforms.
Guidance signals the momentum isn’t slowing
If the Q4 results impressed investors, the outlook sealed the deal. Arista expects first-quarter sales of about $2.6 billion, well ahead of the roughly $2.46 billion Wall Street had penciled in. The company also projected a Q1 gross margin between 62% and 63%, roughly in line with expectations.
Taken together, the guidance suggests the AI-driven data center buildout is still in full swing. As hyperscalers race to expand computing capacity, the networking layer that connects it all is proving just as critical as the chips themselves.
For Arista, that means riding one of the most powerful infrastructure waves in tech right now—and investors are clearly buying the story.