Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) Shares Gap Down After Insider Selling

Key Points

• Pure Storage's stock (NYSE:PSTG) opened at $78.18 after insider John Colgrove sold 95,300 shares for a total of $5,725,624.00, leading to a notable price gap down from the previous close of $80.54.
• Despite the insider selling, analysts remain optimistic with several firms increasing their price targets, including Guggenheim's target of $93.00 and Northland Securities raising their estimate from $63.00 to $71.00.
• In its latest earnings report, Pure Storage exceeded expectations with an EPS of $0.43 and reported revenue growth of 12.7% year-over-year, totaling $861 million for the quarter.

Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $80.54, but opened at $78.18. Pure Storage shares last traded at $79.20, with a volume of 1,765,784 shares.

Specifically, insider John Colgrove sold 95,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.08, for a total transaction of $5,725,624.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 400,000 shares in the company, valued at $24,032,000. This represents a 19.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on PSTG shares. Northland Securities upped their price objective on Pure Storage from $63.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Pure Storage in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Pure Storage from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Pure Storage from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Pure Storage in a research note on Thursday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $77.11.

Pure Storage Trading Down 2.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $25.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 192.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.44 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average of $57.47 and a 200 day moving average of $53.47.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The technology company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.04. Pure Storage had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 11.33%. The firm had revenue of $861.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $845.78 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Pure Storage has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Q3 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Pure Storage, Inc. will post 0.44 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pure Storage

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Penserra Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Pure Storage by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 1,666 shares of the technology company's stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Pure Storage by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 4,790 shares of the technology company's stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Pure Storage by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 700 shares of the technology company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Pure Storage by 49.0% in the 2nd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 611 shares of the technology company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GraniteShares Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Pure Storage by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 8,001 shares of the technology company's stock worth $461,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.42% of the company's stock.

Pure Storage Company Profile

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.

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