Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) CEO Sells 74,500 Shares

by · The Markets Daily

Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE – Get Free Report) CEO Shantanu Narayen sold 74,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.56, for a total transaction of $18,741,220.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 289,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,757,189.44. This represents a 20.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Shantanu Narayen also recently made the following trade(s):

  • On Thursday, September 17th, Shantanu Narayen sold 50,500 shares of Adobe stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.57, for a total transaction of $12,603,285.00.

Adobe Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADBE traded down $3.75 on Friday, reaching $248.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,194,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,849,953. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $256.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $245.57. Adobe Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.12 and a 52-week high of $370.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.89, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.42.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 10th. The software company reported $6.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.08 by $0.05. Adobe had a net margin of 28.05% and a return on equity of 65.65%. The business had revenue of $6.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.31 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Adobe has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 6.300-6.350 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 24.450-24.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Adobe Inc. will post 20.01 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Adobe

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Adobe in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $8,437,821,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Adobe by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,531,678 shares of the software company’s stock worth $4,027,170,000 after acquiring an additional 414,049 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Adobe during the fourth quarter worth $2,275,165,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Adobe by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 6,228,503 shares of the software company’s stock worth $2,179,914,000 after acquiring an additional 611,358 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Adobe by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,119,025 shares of the software company’s stock worth $1,791,607,000 after acquiring an additional 297,337 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.79% of the company’s stock.

Adobe News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Adobe this week:

  • Positive Sentiment: Adobe’s Acrobat Student Spaces platform has surpassed 1 million monthly users since its beta launch, supporting the company’s argument that AI tools such as adaptive flashcards, citation generation and study guides can expand engagement and potentially create new monetization opportunities. E-Commerce Update – AI-Powered Student Spaces Revolutionizes Learning With Adobe Acrobat
  • Positive Sentiment: Several recent analyses characterize ADBE as both a value and growth stock. Adobe trades at roughly 14 times trailing earnings despite record quarterly revenue, suggesting the market may be underestimating the long-term potential of converting free AI users into paying customers. How Much Upside Is Left In Adobe Stock?
  • Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains focused on Adobe’s fiscal 2026 earnings outlook and upcoming quarterly results. The available reports do not indicate a material change to consensus estimates, leaving the next earnings report as an important catalyst. What is KeyCorp’s Forecast for Adobe FY2026 Earnings?
  • Negative Sentiment: Adobe declined to provide fiscal 2027 guidance after its fiscal third-quarter results. The omission produced a mixed analyst response and increased uncertainty about how quickly generative AI will affect revenue growth, causing analysts to defer more decisive views until the fourth quarter. Analysts Are Punting Their Calls Into the Next Quarter After Adobe’s Mixed Earnings
  • Negative Sentiment: The outgoing CEO’s reported $31.5 million share sale is adding to investor concerns about insider confidence, particularly as Adobe manages a CEO transition and competition from AI-native software tools. ADBE Stock On Track for Third Weekly Loss

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on ADBE shares. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Adobe in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Citizens Jmp restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Adobe in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Adobe in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Adobe from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Adobe from $250.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $282.68.

View Our Latest Stock Report on Adobe

Adobe Company Profile

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Adobe Inc (NASDAQ:ADBE) develops software and services used for digital content creation, document management and digital experiences. The company serves creative professionals, marketers, enterprises, educators and consumers worldwide through subscription-based and cloud-enabled products.

Adobe’s Creative Cloud portfolio includes applications such as Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro and After Effects, along with related tools for photography, graphic design, video production and web development.

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