VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Makes New $1.30 Million Investment in NetApp, Inc. $NTAP

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 8,400 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NTAP. Park Square Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in NetApp by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC now owns 253 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc bought a new stake in NetApp in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in NetApp in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc purchased a new position in shares of NetApp during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of NetApp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.17% of the company’s stock.

NetApp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:NTAP opened at $199.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $39.14 billion, a PE ratio of 28.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $182.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.89. NetApp, Inc. has a one year low of $93.69 and a one year high of $209.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.24.

NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The data storage provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. NetApp had a net margin of 19.18% and a return on equity of 119.13%. The company’s revenue was up 29.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. NetApp has set its FY 2027 guidance at 9.730-10.030 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 2.540-2.640 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that NetApp, Inc. will post 8.32 EPS for the current year.

NetApp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. NetApp’s payout ratio is 29.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NTAP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on NetApp from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of NetApp in a report on Friday, September 4th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of NetApp in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded NetApp from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their target price on NetApp from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $193.86.

Key NetApp News

Here are the key news stories impacting NetApp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded NetApp to “Strong Buy” from “Hold,” adding to the stock’s positive momentum and likely providing a near-term catalyst for investors.
• Positive Sentiment: NetApp’s inclusion on Zacks’ list of top momentum stocks reinforces the view that its recent operating performance and share-price trend remain favorable. Best Momentum Stock to Buy for September 10th
• Positive Sentiment: Northland Securities raised its FY2027 EPS forecast to $8.14 from $7.11 and its FY2028 forecast to $9.15 from $7.85. It also increased estimates for several quarterly periods while maintaining an “Outperform” rating, signaling stronger expectations for demand and profitability.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent results showed substantial earnings and revenue strength: NetApp reported quarterly EPS of $2.58 versus the $2.12 consensus estimate, while revenue of $2.03 billion exceeded the $1.84 billion forecast and grew nearly 30% year over year. The company also raised its product and earnings outlook, supporting optimism around its storage and data-management strategy.
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholders approved NetApp’s governance changes and re-elected the company’s director nominees, including CEO George Kurian. The result removes a potential governance overhang and maintains leadership continuity. NetApp Shareholders Approve Governance Changes and Board Slate
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are comparing NetApp with Super Micro Computer as a value investment, but the article does not represent a specific change in NetApp’s outlook. SMCI or NTAP: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Northland’s $187 price target remains below NetApp’s recent trading level, suggesting that at least one analyst sees limited near-term upside despite raising earnings estimates.

Insider Buying and Selling at NetApp

In other NetApp news, President Cesar Cernuda sold 2,608 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.48, for a total value of $533,283.84. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 46,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,514,454.40. This represents a 5.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Elizabeth O’Callahan sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.82, for a total value of $193,820.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,297 shares in the company, valued at $5,872,164.54. The trade was a 3.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 54,072 shares of company stock valued at $8,556,040 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

About NetApp

NetApp, Inc (NASDAQ: NTAP) is a data infrastructure and cloud storage company that helps organizations manage, protect and access data across on-premises environments, private clouds and public clouds. Its offerings are designed to support enterprise workloads such as databases, business applications, artificial intelligence and virtualized computing.

The company’s portfolio includes all-flash and hybrid storage systems, cloud storage services, data management software and infrastructure-as-a-service solutions.