Wedbush Securities Inc. Increases Stake in Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG)

Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pure Storage, Inc. (NYSE:PSTG) by 168.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,600 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,907 shares during the quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Pure Storage were worth $809,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PSTG. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in Pure Storage in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Pure Storage in the first quarter worth $27,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in shares of Pure Storage by 61.2% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 424 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Pure Storage by 242.9% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 432 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Pure Storage during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 83.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Pure Storage

In other Pure Storage news, CFO P. Kevan Krysler sold 14,296 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.79, for a total value of $911,941.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 518,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,082,961.17. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider John Colgrove sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.50, for a total value of $5,950,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 900,000 shares in the company, valued at $53,550,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO P. Kevan Krysler sold 14,296 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.79, for a total transaction of $911,941.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 518,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,082,961.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 324,177 shares of company stock valued at $18,863,083. Insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PSTG shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Pure Storage from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Northland Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $59.00 price objective (down previously from $68.00) on shares of Pure Storage in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Pure Storage from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Pure Storage from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Lake Street Capital decreased their price target on shares of Pure Storage from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.95.

Pure Storage Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE PSTG opened at $47.71 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 170.39, a PEG ratio of 7.10 and a beta of 1.11. Pure Storage, Inc. has a one year low of $31.00 and a one year high of $70.41. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

About Pure Storage

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.