John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Increases Position in Adobe Inc. $ADBE

Key Points

• John G Ullman & Associates boosted its Adobe stake by 82% in the fourth quarter, ending with 11,845 shares valued at about $4.15 million.
• Adobe insiders have been selling shares, including CEO Shantanu Narayen and CFO Daniel Durn, while hedge funds still own the vast majority of the stock.
• Adobe reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue and later authorized a $25 billion share buyback, but Wall Street sentiment remains cautious with a Hold consensus rating.

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. lifted its position in Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE - Free Report) by 82.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,845 shares of the software company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,335 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Adobe were worth $4,146,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Adobe in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in Adobe during the third quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in Adobe during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in Adobe during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in Adobe during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. 81.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Adobe

In other news, CEO Shantanu Narayen sold 75,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.54, for a total value of $18,265,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 359,538 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,561,884.52. This trade represents a 17.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Daniel Durn sold 1,336 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.02, for a total transaction of $331,354.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 42,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,623,440.66. This trade represents a 3.02% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 77,091 shares of company stock worth $18,782,773. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

More Adobe News

Here are the key news stories impacting Adobe this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Social media and market commentary point to a sector rotation from semiconductors into software, with Adobe among the leaders, as traders buy into a rebound for established SaaS and creative-tools names. Adobe Stock (ADBE) Opinions on Sector Rotation to Software
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors highlighted Adobe as potentially undervalued after months of pressure, citing strong profitability and AI features such as Firefly and Acrobat AI Assistant as reasons the company can keep growing despite AI-related fears. Is Generative AI Expanding Adobe's Digital Media Opportunity?
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage around Adobe’s latest AI product push, including the new Acrobat productivity agent, reinforces the company’s strategy to embed generative AI across its workflow tools, which could support longer-term revenue growth. Adobe (ADBE) Expands Its Agentic AI Push With New Acrobat Productivity Agent
• Negative Sentiment: Some recent articles and reviews emphasize competitive pressure and user dissatisfaction with Adobe’s products, while insider selling and heavy hedge fund trimming may keep sentiment cautious even after the rebound. Adobe was overkill for the editing I actually do, and that’s what finally made me leave

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ADBE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Argus reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Adobe in a research note on Monday, March 16th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Adobe from $375.00 to $285.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Adobe from $400.00 to $290.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of Adobe from $310.00 to $235.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Adobe in a research note on Friday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $338.15.

Adobe Price Performance

Adobe stock opened at $247.60 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $247.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $290.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Adobe Inc. has a 12-month low of $224.13 and a 12-month high of $422.95.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The software company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.87 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. Adobe had a net margin of 29.48% and a return on equity of 64.48%. The business's revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.08 EPS. Adobe has set its FY 2026 guidance at 23.300-23.500 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 5.800-5.850 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Adobe Inc. will post 19.14 EPS for the current year.

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

About Adobe

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.

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