Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) Shares Sold by Saratoga Research & Investment Management

Saratoga Research & Investment Management reduced its position in shares of Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) by 36.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 81,501 shares of the software company’s stock after selling 47,645 shares during the period. Adobe accounts for about 1.9% of Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in Adobe were worth $41,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ADBE. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Adobe in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Steph & Co. boosted its position in shares of Adobe by 63.8% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 77 shares of the software company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Adobe in the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Adobe during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Adobe during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 81.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Adobe from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Adobe from $653.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. HSBC dropped their price objective on shares of Adobe from $557.00 to $511.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of Adobe in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Adobe from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $570.00 to $580.00 in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $607.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Adobe news, CEO Shantanu Narayen sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.11, for a total transaction of $13,602,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 379,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,576,802.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Shantanu Narayen sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $544.11, for a total value of $13,602,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 379,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $206,576,802.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mark S. Garfield sold 96 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $470.00, for a total value of $45,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,940,160. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,270 shares of company stock worth $15,165,916. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Adobe Price Performance

Adobe stock traded up $8.78 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $555.54. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,084,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,723,748. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $485.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $534.90. Adobe Inc. has a 12 month low of $433.97 and a 12 month high of $638.25. The company has a market capitalization of $246.33 billion, a PE ratio of 49.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.27.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 13th. The software company reported $4.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.39 by $0.09. Adobe had a net margin of 24.86% and a return on equity of 40.67%. The firm had revenue of $5.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.04 earnings per share. Adobe’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Adobe Inc. will post 14.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Adobe announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 14th that permits the company to repurchase $25.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the software company to buy up to 10.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Adobe

Adobe Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified software company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Digital Media, Digital Experience, and Publishing and Advertising. The Digital Media segment offers products, services, and solutions that enable individuals, teams, and enterprises to create, publish, and promote content; and Document Cloud, a unified cloud-based document services platform.