Bank of America Issues Positive Forecast for NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) Stock Price

Key Points

• Bank of America raised its price target on NetApp to $150 from $125, but kept a neutral rating. The new target still implies downside from the stock’s prior close.
• NetApp shares surged 26.7% to $180.37 on Friday, trading well above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The move came alongside very heavy volume versus normal trading activity.
• In its latest earnings report, NetApp missed EPS estimates but beat revenue expectations with $1.95 billion in sales, up 12.5% year over year. The company also issued strong FY2027 guidance and announced a $1 billion share repurchase program.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by Bank of America from $125.00 to $150.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Bank of America's target price would indicate a potential downside of 16.84% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on NTAP. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $199.00 price objective on shares of NetApp in a report on Friday. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of NetApp in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of NetApp from $88.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of NetApp from $115.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of NetApp from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $125.00 to $110.00 in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NetApp presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $154.17.

NetApp Trading Up 26.7%

NTAP traded up $37.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $180.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,472,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,560,772. NetApp has a fifty-two week low of $93.69 and a fifty-two week high of $192.83. The stock has a market cap of $35.59 billion, a PE ratio of 30.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.28. The business's 50-day moving average is $110.99 and its 200-day moving average is $107.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The data storage provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by ($0.24). NetApp had a net margin of 18.07% and a return on equity of 118.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.93 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. NetApp has set its FY 2027 guidance at 8.700-9.000 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 2.050-2.150 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that NetApp will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NetApp

In other NetApp news, EVP Elizabeth M. O'callahan sold 1,000 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.73, for a total value of $117,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,164,112.86. The trade was a 5.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lorenzo Daniel De sold 275 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $33,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $130,800. The trade was a 20.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 3,275 shares of company stock valued at $347,650 over the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of NetApp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NTAP. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of NetApp by 38.3% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 759 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NetApp during the second quarter valued at about $315,000. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of NetApp by 9.9% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 46,792 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $4,986,000 after acquiring an additional 4,232 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its stake in shares of NetApp by 7.3% in the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 24,301 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $2,589,000 after acquiring an additional 1,662 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of NetApp by 12.7% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 20,161 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $2,148,000 after acquiring an additional 2,277 shares in the last quarter. 92.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about NetApp

Here are the key news stories impacting NetApp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NetApp beat Q4 revenue expectations and posted revenue of $1.95 billion, up about 12.5% year over year, signaling healthy demand for its storage and hybrid cloud offerings. NetApp Q4 Earnings & Revenues Surpass Estimates, Stock Up
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s FY2027 outlook came in ahead of Wall Street estimates, with guidance for both EPS and revenue above consensus, reinforcing confidence that AI and hybrid cloud adoption are accelerating growth. Analyst Reiterates Buy on NetApp as Strong Q Results and FY27 Outlook Signal Sustainable Growth and Margin Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: NetApp also announced a new $1 billion share repurchase authorization, which can support shareholder returns and help offset dilution. NetApp Announces New $1 Billion Share Repurchase Program
• Neutral Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms raised price targets after the report, but ratings were mixed, with some firms keeping neutral/hold stances despite the stronger results.
• Neutral Sentiment: NetApp declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, adding to its income appeal for investors, though this is not the main catalyst for the stock move.
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the upbeat report, NetApp still missed consensus on Q4 EPS, which may limit how far the stock can run if margins remain under pressure. NetApp (NTAP) Stock Falls on Q4 2026 Earnings

About NetApp

NetApp, Inc NASDAQ: NTAP is a data management and storage company that delivers hybrid cloud data services for applications and data. Founded in 1992 as Network Appliance and rebranded as NetApp in 2008, the company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. NetApp's offering focuses on enabling organizations to store, manage, protect and move data across on-premises environments and major public clouds.

The company's product portfolio centers on the ONTAP data management software and a range of storage systems and services built around it.

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