NetApp (NTAP) ended the recent trading session at $168.86, demonstrating a -1.67% change from the preceding day's closing price. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.42%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.29%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.29%.
The stock of data storage company has risen by 7.02% in the past month, leading the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 0.85% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.2%.
Market participants will be closely following the financial results of NetApp in its upcoming release. On that day, NetApp is projected to report earnings of $2.11 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 36.13%. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $1.83 billion, showing a 17.43% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $8.88 per share and revenue of $7.48 billion, which would represent changes of +9.23% and +8.07%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for NetApp. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.
Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. NetApp is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.
In terms of valuation, NetApp is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 19.35. This indicates a premium in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 16.26.
Investors should also note that NTAP has a PEG ratio of 2.53 right now. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. By the end of yesterday's trading, the Computer- Storage Devices industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.72.
The Computer- Storage Devices industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 30, which puts it in the top 13% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow NTAP in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"
Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.
This top pick is a little-known satellite-based communications firm. Space is projected to become a trillion dollar industry, and this company's customer base is growing fast. Analysts have forecasted a major revenue breakout in 2025. Of course, all our elite picks aren't winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Hims & Hers Health, which shot up +209%.
Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
NetApp, Inc. (NTAP): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).