Samsara (NYSE:IOT) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Samsara shares gapped up after Wells Fargo raised its price target from $46 to $50 and kept an overweight rating, with the stock opening higher than its prior close. The analyst move helped lift sentiment around the name.
• The company posted stronger-than-expected Q1 FY2027 results, with revenue and EPS topping consensus estimates. Management also raised or reaffirmed guidance above Wall Street expectations, signaling continued growth momentum.
• Despite the upbeat fundamentals, insider selling and some post-earnings caution show investors are still watching profitability and future growth closely. Even so, institutional ownership remains very high and several analysts continue to rate the stock a buy.

Samsara Inc. (NYSE:IOT - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $46.00 to $50.00. The stock had previously closed at $35.21, but opened at $36.63. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Samsara shares last traded at $36.4920, with a volume of 5,376,697 shares.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $45.00 target price on Samsara in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Samsara in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Samsara in a report on Friday. Zacks Research lowered Samsara from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Samsara in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Benjamin Louis Kirchhoff sold 2,554 shares of Samsara stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.47, for a total value of $70,158.38. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 111,704 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,068,508.88. This trade represents a 2.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Adam Eltoukhy sold 5,473 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.21, for a total transaction of $165,339.33. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 468,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,147,494.05. This trade represents a 1.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 2,700,139 shares of company stock worth $79,212,871 in the last quarter. 35.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Samsara

Here are the key news stories impacting Samsara this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Samsara reported stronger-than-expected Q1 FY2027 results, with EPS of $0.17 to $0.18 versus the $0.13 consensus and revenue of about $478.8 million versus expectations near $455.2 million, showing continued top-line momentum. Samsara earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company also raised/affirmed full-year and second-quarter guidance above Wall Street estimates, reinforcing confidence that growth remains durable as Samsara approaches $2 billion in annual recurring revenue. Business Wire press release
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG Research reaffirmed its “buy” rating and set a $45 price target, implying meaningful upside from the recent share price level. BTIG rating reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Management highlighted strong enterprise adoption and momentum in Operational AI, which supports the long-term story but does not change the near-term financial picture on its own. Financial Post coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the strong quarter, some coverage noted the stock slipped after earnings as investors weighed guidance and profitability details, suggesting the market is still sensitive to any signs of slower growth ahead. Barron's article

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Samsara

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of IOT. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Samsara by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 47,660,513 shares of the company's stock worth $1,689,565,000 after buying an additional 6,208,553 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Samsara by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,134,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,174,620,000 after acquiring an additional 3,417,849 shares during the period. Sands Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Samsara by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 20,518,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $764,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,242,122 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Samsara by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,878,112 shares of the company's stock worth $421,079,000 after buying an additional 4,401,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Samsara by 42.1% during the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 11,213,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $397,536,000 after acquiring an additional 3,322,023 shares in the last quarter. 96.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Samsara Stock Up 3.6%

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.44. The company has a market capitalization of $21.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -1,821.34, a PEG ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 1.34.

Samsara (NYSE:IOT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.05. Samsara had a negative return on equity of 0.72% and a negative net margin of 0.56%.The firm had revenue of $444.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $422.29 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Samsara Inc. will post 0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Samsara Company Profile

Samsara develops an industrial Internet of Things (IoT) platform designed to help organizations monitor, manage, and optimize physical operations. The company combines connected hardware — including telematics devices, GPS trackers, dash cameras, and environmental sensors — with cloud-based software to provide real-time visibility into vehicles, mobile equipment, and fixed assets. Its software offers tools for fleet management, driver and worker safety, asset tracking, compliance (including electronic logging), maintenance scheduling, and operational analytics.

The Samsara platform emphasizes integration of live data streams with analytics and workflow features to drive efficiency and safety across industries that rely on dispersed equipment and mobile workforces.

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