Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) Shares Up 1.9%

Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report) shares rose 1.9% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $53.36 and last traded at $53.31. Approximately 3,654,101 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 30% from the average daily volume of 2,804,948 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.30.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Pure Storage from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Pure Storage in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Pure Storage from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Pure Storage from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Pure Storage from $41.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Pure Storage has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.53.

Pure Storage Price Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $49.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.00. The company has a market capitalization of $17.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 307.78, a P/E/G ratio of 6.79 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The technology company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $789.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $784.31 million. Pure Storage had a net margin of 2.17% and a return on equity of 12.60%. Pure Storage's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Pure Storage, Inc. will post 0.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Pure Storage

In other Pure Storage news, Director Scott Dietzen sold 147,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.49, for a total transaction of $7,863,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 100,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,349,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Scott Dietzen sold 147,000 shares of Pure Storage stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.49, for a total value of $7,863,030.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,349,000. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ajay Singh sold 37,588 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.54, for a total transaction of $2,012,461.52. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 380,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,389,852.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 242,012 shares of company stock worth $12,932,788. 6.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Pure Storage

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pure Storage during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Pure Storage during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in Pure Storage in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. LM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Pure Storage in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Pure Storage in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 83.42% of the company's stock.

Pure Storage Company Profile

Pure Storage, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides data storage technologies, products, and services in the United States and internationally. The company's Purity software is shared across its products and provides enterprise-class data services, such as data reduction, data protection, and encryption, as well as storage protocols, including block, file, and object.