Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) Stock Price Down 0.5%

Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG) was down 0.5% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $49.93 and last traded at $50.16. Approximately 770,789 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 4,449,426 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Pure Storage in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Pure Storage from $42.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Pure Storage in a research note on Friday, March 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Pure Storage from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Pure Storage from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.63.

Pure Storage Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $51.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market cap of $16.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 307.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.51 and a beta of 1.15.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The technology company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $789.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $784.31 million. Pure Storage had a net margin of 2.17% and a return on equity of 12.60%. The company’s revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Pure Storage, Inc. will post 0.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Pure Storage news, Director Roxanne Taylor sold 36,860 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.76, for a total transaction of $1,981,593.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 18,883 shares in the company, valued at $1,015,150.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO P. Kevan Krysler sold 15,286 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.80, for a total value of $807,100.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 507,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,813,107.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Roxanne Taylor sold 36,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.76, for a total transaction of $1,981,593.60. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,015,150.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 286,581 shares of company stock valued at $15,266,704 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Pure Storage

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Pure Storage in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in Pure Storage in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Pure Storage in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Pure Storage during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Pure Storage by 295.6% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 633 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. 83.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pure Storage Company Profile

Pure Storage, Inc engages in the provision of data storage and management technologies, products, and services in the United States and internationally. Its Purity software is shared across its products and provides enterprise-class data services, such as always-on data reduction, data protection, and encryption, as well as storage protocols, including block, file, and object.