Empirical Finance LLC Acquires 5,617 Shares of NetApp, Inc. $NTAP

Key Points

• Empirical Finance increased its NetApp stake by 77% in the second quarter, purchasing 5,617 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 12,913 shares worth approximately $2.0 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.17% of NetApp.
• NetApp reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $2.58 per share versus the $2.12 consensus estimate and revenue of $2.02 billion, up 29.9% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with six Buy ratings and ten Holds and an average price target of $192.07. NetApp also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, representing a 1.1% annualized yield.

Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP - Free Report) by 77.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,913 shares of the data storage provider's stock after buying an additional 5,617 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC's holdings in NetApp were worth $1,998,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Park Square Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of NetApp by 68.7% in the fourth quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 253 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Gen Wealth Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of NetApp during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of NetApp during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc purchased a new stake in NetApp during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in NetApp during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 92.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at NetApp

In related news, EVP Elizabeth O'Callahan sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.82, for a total value of $193,820.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,872,164.54. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Cesar Cernuda sold 49,464 shares of NetApp stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.82, for a total transaction of $7,658,016.48. Following the sale, the president owned 46,806 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,246,504.92. The trade was a 51.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,072 shares of company stock worth $8,556,040. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NetApp Price Performance

NASDAQ:NTAP opened at $189.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.44. NetApp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.69 and a 52-week high of $209.06. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $180.03 and a 200 day moving average of $142.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.24.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The data storage provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. NetApp had a return on equity of 119.13% and a net margin of 19.18%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 29.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.15 EPS. NetApp has set its FY 2027 guidance at 9.730-10.030 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 2.540-2.640 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that NetApp, Inc. will post 7.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NetApp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. NetApp's dividend payout ratio is 29.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on NTAP shares. Barclays raised their target price on NetApp from $199.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded NetApp from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of NetApp from $180.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of NetApp from $160.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of NetApp from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NetApp presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $192.07.

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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