Synergy Investment Management LLC Takes Position in NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP)

Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 276 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $32,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its holdings in shares of NetApp by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 194,852 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $22,618,000 after buying an additional 22,574 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in NetApp by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,287,432 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $149,445,000 after purchasing an additional 27,857 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in NetApp by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,597 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in NetApp by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,951 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $343,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. purchased a new position in NetApp during the fourth quarter worth about $247,000. 92.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NetApp Stock Performance

NASDAQ NTAP opened at $94.87 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $118.42 and its 200-day moving average is $121.10. NetApp, Inc. has a 12-month low of $92.59 and a 12-month high of $135.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $19.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.24.

NetApp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. NetApp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NTAP shares. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of NetApp from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of NetApp in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of NetApp from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price target (down from $120.00) on shares of NetApp in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of NetApp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $129.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO George Kurian sold 8,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.04, for a total transaction of $1,011,840.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 266,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,755,705.60. This represents a 3.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Cesar Cernuda sold 22,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.99, for a total transaction of $2,529,780.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 27,099 shares in the company, valued at $3,116,114.01. This trade represents a 44.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,903 shares of company stock valued at $7,260,341. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

NetApp Profile

NetApp, Inc provides cloud-led and data-centric services to manage and share data on-premises, and private and public clouds worldwide. It operates in two segments, Hybrid Cloud and Public Could. The company offers intelligent data management software, such as NetApp ONTAP, NetApp Snapshot, NetApp SnapCenter Backup Management, NetApp SnapMirror Data Replication, NetApp SnapLock Data Compliance, and storage infrastructure solutions, including NetApp All-Flash FAS series, NetApp Fabric Attached Storage, NetApp E/EF series, and NetApp StorageGRID.