Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Needham & Company LLC Analyst Says

Key Points

• Needham & Company LLC has raised its price target for Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG) from $75.00 to $85.00, indicating a potential upside of 39.62%.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.43, surpassing analyst expectations, with revenue increasing 12.7% year-over-year to $861 million.
• Insider selling has been notable, with significant shares sold recently, leading to a 28.44% decrease in the ownership of one insider, while institutional investors hold approximately 83.42% of the company's stock.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG - Free Report) had its target price increased by Needham & Company LLC from $75.00 to $85.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the technology company's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Barclays cut their target price on Pure Storage from $61.00 to $57.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Pure Storage from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Pure Storage in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Pure Storage from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Pure Storage in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $60.00 target price on the stock. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pure Storage currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.11.

Pure Storage Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of Pure Storage stock traded down $3.06 during trading on Thursday, hitting $77.48. 9,351,858 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,529,062. The firm has a market cap of $25.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 188.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.49 and a beta of 1.20. Pure Storage has a 52-week low of $34.51 and a 52-week high of $80.68. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $57.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.34.

Pure Storage (NYSE:PSTG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The technology company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.04. Pure Storage had a return on equity of 11.34% and a net margin of 4.15%.The company had revenue of $861.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $845.78 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. The firm'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, equities analysts expect that Pure Storage will post 0.44 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ajay Singh sold 22,601 shares of Pure Storage stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.45, for a total transaction of $1,253,225.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 261,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,498,234.25. The trade was a 7.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Francis Murphy sold 6,959 shares of Pure Storage stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.17, for a total value of $390,887.03. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,706 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,106,886.02. This trade represents a 26.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 542,094 shares of company stock worth $32,367,537 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pure Storage

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pure Storage during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Mechanics Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Pure Storage during the second quarter worth about $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pure Storage by 402.8% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 548 shares of the technology company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. SouthState Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Pure Storage by 474.8% during the second quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 592 shares of the technology company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the period. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pure Storage by 49.0% during the second quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 611 shares of the technology company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.