Sei Investments Co. Purchases 144,801 Shares of NetApp, Inc. $NTAP

Key Points

• Sei Investments Co. increased its NetApp stake by 22% in the first quarter, adding 144,801 shares to reach 803,450 shares valued at about $82.3 million.
• NetApp’s latest quarterly results were mixed: EPS came in at $2.03, below expectations, while revenue of $1.95 billion topped estimates and rose 12.5% year over year.
• Shares were trading higher and the company maintained shareholder returns, with the stock up 1.9% to $167.74 and a quarterly dividend of $0.52 scheduled for July 29, implying a 1.2% annual yield.

Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP - Free Report) by 22.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 803,450 shares of the data storage provider's stock after purchasing an additional 144,801 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned about 0.41% of NetApp worth $82,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NTAP. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in shares of NetApp by 27.3% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 79,707 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $8,161,000 after buying an additional 17,079 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP raised its holdings in NetApp by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP now owns 40,860 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $4,184,000 after acquiring an additional 4,680 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in NetApp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,071,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in NetApp by 127.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,658,066 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $374,549,000 after acquiring an additional 2,046,912 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ABN Amro Investment Solutions lifted its position in NetApp by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 28,785 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $2,947,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. 92.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NetApp Trading Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:NTAP opened at $167.74 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $32.92 billion, a PE ratio of 26.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $157.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.54. NetApp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $93.69 and a 12 month high of $192.83.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The data storage provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.27 by ($0.24). The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. NetApp had a net margin of 18.43% and a return on equity of 117.23%. NetApp's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.93 earnings per share. NetApp has set its FY 2027 guidance at 8.700-9.000 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 2.050-2.150 EPS. Research analysts forecast that NetApp, Inc. will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current year.

NetApp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. NetApp's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on NetApp from $115.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Argus upped their price target on NetApp from $130.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on NetApp from $88.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on NetApp from $115.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $160.00 price objective on shares of NetApp in a report on Friday, May 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $169.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at NetApp

In other NetApp news, President Cesar Cernuda sold 49,464 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.82, for a total value of $7,658,016.48. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 46,806 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,246,504.92. This trade represents a 51.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lorenzo Daniel De sold 275 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,800. The trade was a 20.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 52,964 shares of company stock valued at $8,181,642. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NetApp Profile

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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