Erste Asset Management GmbH Lowers Stock Position in Pure Storage, Inc. $PSTG

Key Points

• Erste Asset Management GmbH reduced its stake in Pure Storage, Inc. by 9.1%, owning 287,500 shares worth approximately $12.79 million after selling 28,700 shares in the first quarter.
• Insider selling activity was notable, with key executive Ajay Singh reportedly selling 22,601 shares for over $1.25 million, representing a 7.96% decrease in their ownership.
• A recent report showed analysts **updating price targets** for Pure Storage, with Morgan Stanley raising theirs from $40.00 to $62.00, indicating a generally positive outlook for the stock.

Erste Asset Management GmbH cut its stake in shares of Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG - Free Report) by 9.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 287,500 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 28,700 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned about 0.09% of Pure Storage worth $12,792,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of Pure Storage by 55.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 650 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Pure Storage by 35.6% in the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 910 shares of the technology company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC increased its holdings in Pure Storage by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 11,372 shares of the technology company's stock worth $503,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Pure Storage by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 5,173 shares of the technology company's stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in Pure Storage by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 29,481 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,305,000 after buying an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. 83.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John Colgrove sold 198,749 shares of Pure Storage stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total transaction of $11,988,539.68. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 500,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,160,000. The trade was a 28.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ajay Singh sold 22,601 shares of Pure Storage stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.45, for a total value of $1,253,225.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 261,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,498,234.25. The trade was a 7.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 446,794 shares of company stock valued at $26,641,913 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

Pure Storage Stock Up 4.6%

NYSE:PSTG traded up $2.5580 on Friday, hitting $58.2880. The stock had a trading volume of 1,724,493 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,946,799. The stock has a market cap of $19.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 157.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 1.07. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $56.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.49. Pure Storage, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.51 and a 52-week high of $73.67.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The technology company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.04. Pure Storage had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 3.93%.The business had revenue of $778.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $770.03 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. Pure Storage has set its Q2 2026 guidance at EPS. FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Pure Storage, Inc. will post 0.44 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PSTG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $66.00 price objective (up from $53.00) on shares of Pure Storage in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Pure Storage from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Pure Storage from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Pure Storage in a report on Thursday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Pure Storage from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.11.

About Pure Storage

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.