Adobe Inc. $ADBE Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC reduced its Adobe stake by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 13,831 shares and ending with 436,847 shares worth about $152.9 million.
• Adobe reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $6.06 and revenue of $6.40 billion, both topping analyst estimates, while revenue rose 12% year over year.
• The company’s board authorized a $25 billion share repurchase plan, which would allow Adobe to buy back up to 24.9% of its stock and may signal management believes the shares are undervalued.

LPL Financial LLC cut its holdings in Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE - Free Report) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 436,847 shares of the software company's stock after selling 13,831 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.11% of Adobe worth $152,892,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Adobe by 0.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,369,395 shares of the software company's stock valued at $14,593,054,000 after acquiring an additional 344,816 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Adobe by 1.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,632,009 shares of the software company's stock valued at $7,277,941,000 after purchasing an additional 352,448 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Adobe by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,531,678 shares of the software company's stock valued at $4,027,170,000 after purchasing an additional 414,049 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Adobe in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,275,165,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Adobe by 53.3% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,617,145 shares of the software company's stock valued at $1,981,448,000 after purchasing an additional 1,952,994 shares during the period. 81.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Adobe Stock Down 1.9%

Adobe stock opened at $233.38 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $245.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $279.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.42. Adobe Inc. has a twelve month low of $224.13 and a twelve month high of $416.39.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The software company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.87 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. Adobe had a net margin of 29.48% and a return on equity of 64.48%. The company's revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Adobe Inc. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Adobe declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software company to reacquire up to 24.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Daniel Durn sold 1,336 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total transaction of $331,354.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 42,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,623,440.66. The trade was a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Jillian Forusz sold 755 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.25, for a total transaction of $185,918.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $867,046.25. The trade was a 17.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 77,091 shares of company stock worth $18,782,773. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ADBE. Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Adobe in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Adobe from $420.00 to $405.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Dbs Bank lowered Adobe from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Adobe from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Barclays lowered Adobe from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their target price for the company from $335.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Friday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $331.65.

Adobe News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Adobe this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adobe’s upcoming earnings could provide a catalyst if management shows Firefly and GenStudio are driving meaningful AI-related demand and improved guidance. Adobe Faces Make-or-Break Earnings Test as Traders Brace for Big Stock Swing
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts and market watchers still see upside if Adobe can prove AI is becoming a real tailwind, rather than just a narrative, which could help restore investor confidence. Adobe Q2 Preview: Stock Near 7-Year Low, Market Expert Says Investors Want Proof 'AI Is A Tailwind'
• Positive Sentiment: Options traders are pricing in a large post-earnings move, suggesting the stock could rebound sharply if results beat expectations and the outlook improves. Adobe Will Report Q2 Earnings Tomorrow. Options Traders Expect a 9.45% Move in ADBE Stock

Adobe Company Profile

Adobe Inc, founded in 1982 by John Warnock and Charles Geschke and headquartered in San Jose, California, is a global software company that develops tools and services for creative professionals, marketers and enterprises. Under the leadership of CEO Shantanu Narayen, who has led the company since 2007, Adobe has evolved from a provider of desktop publishing tools into a cloud-centric provider of digital media and digital experience solutions.

The company's core offerings are organized around digital media and digital experience.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ADBE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.