Short Interest in Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) Increases By 15.6%
by Sarita Garza · The Markets DailyAdobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE – Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 14,296,921 shares, a growth of 15.6% from the February 12th total of 12,365,032 shares. Currently, 3.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 4,937,503 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Based on an average trading volume of 4,937,503 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days. Currently, 3.5% of the shares of the company are sold short.
Insider Buying and Selling at Adobe
In related news, CFO Daniel Durn sold 1,646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total transaction of $485,323.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 41,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,382,225.75. This trade represents a 3.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Adobe
Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Stance Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Adobe by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Stance Capital LLC now owns 3,981 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $1,393,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire grew its stake in Adobe by 25.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 1,117 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Osbon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Adobe in the 4th quarter valued at about $211,000. World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in Adobe by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 22,726 shares of the software company’s stock worth $7,954,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC purchased a new position in Adobe in the 4th quarter worth approximately $297,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.79% of the company’s stock.
Key Stories Impacting Adobe
Here are the key news stories impacting Adobe this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Record Q1 and AI momentum — Adobe reported a beat for fiscal Q1 with accelerating AI‑first ARR and subscription strength, supporting the company’s longer‑term growth thesis and underpinning the bull case. AI Integration and Capabilities Power Adobe Inc. (ADBE) to Record First Quarter
- Positive Sentiment: Strategic NVIDIA tie‑up — A partnership to co‑develop next‑gen Firefly models and agentic workflows strengthens Adobe’s AI product roadmap and cloud compute capabilities, a clear positive for product moat and future monetization. Adobe Taps Nvidia AI Muscle To Revolutionize Marketing, Creative Pipelines
- Neutral Sentiment: Unusual options and short‑interest chatter — Elevated options activity and reported increases in short interest (some feeds show inconsistent data) are boosting volatility but aren’t conclusive on directional conviction. Monitor open interest and changes in institutional positioning. Adobe Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:ADBE)
- Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts — Citi and other firms have trimmed targets (Citigroup noted a move to $278), reflecting dimmer near‑term expectations and pressuring investor confidence. Citigroup Lowers Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) Price Target to $278.00
- Negative Sentiment: CEO transition / governance uncertainty — Banks including Goldman flag that uncertainty until Adobe names a new CEO is a material near‑term risk; leadership change has sapped confidence despite a planned phased transition. Goldman Sachs Sounds the Alarm on Adobe Stock
- Negative Sentiment: Competitive AI risk — Google’s revamped Stitch product, pitched to turn plain language into high‑fidelity interfaces, is being cited as incremental competitive risk to parts of Adobe’s design/UX franchise. Adobe Stock Drops After Google’s Stitch Redesign
- Negative Sentiment: Questions on metrics, moat and monetization — Critical research pieces highlight KPI reporting changes (Digital Media ARR → Total ARR) and potential AI cannibalization of legacy revenue, raising execution and pricing‑power concerns. Adobe: 3 Reasons Not To Buy, 1 Reason Not To Sell After Q1
- Negative Sentiment: Regulatory / settlement hit — Ongoing fallout from subscription cancellation practices has led to settlements and roughly $150M of consumer remediation/penalties in the headlines, a near‑term cash/PR drag. Adobe agrees to settle over cancellation policy with $150 million agreement
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut their price target on Adobe from $315.00 to $278.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Adobe from $420.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 9th. DA Davidson set a $300.00 price target on Adobe in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Adobe from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Adobe in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $343.88.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Adobe
Adobe Stock Performance
ADBE opened at $246.00 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $278.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $320.79. Adobe has a 52-week low of $244.28 and a 52-week high of $422.95. The company has a market cap of $100.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.
Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The software company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.87 by $0.19. Adobe had a net margin of 29.48% and a return on equity of 64.48%. The firm had revenue of $6.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.08 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Adobe has set its FY 2026 guidance at 23.300-23.500 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 5.800-5.850 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Adobe will post 16.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Adobe Company Profile
Adobe Inc, founded in 1982 by John Warnock and Charles Geschke and headquartered in San Jose, California, is a global software company that develops tools and services for creative professionals, marketers and enterprises. Under the leadership of CEO Shantanu Narayen, who has led the company since 2007, Adobe has evolved from a provider of desktop publishing tools into a cloud-centric provider of digital media and digital experience solutions.
The company’s core offerings are organized around digital media and digital experience.