Adobe Inc. $ADBE Shares Sold by Welch & Forbes LLC

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) by 8.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 94,978 shares of the software company’s stock after selling 8,689 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Adobe were worth $33,504,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ADBE. Twin City Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Adobe by 2.5% during the third quarter. Twin City Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,335 shares of the software company’s stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in Adobe by 63.6% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,723 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $1,313,000 after purchasing an additional 1,448 shares during the period. Meridian Management Co. grew its position in Adobe by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Management Co. now owns 16,706 shares of the software company’s stock worth $5,893,000 after purchasing an additional 5,448 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Adobe by 161.6% in the third quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 23,970 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $8,455,000 after purchasing an additional 14,807 shares during the period. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Adobe by 747.3% during the third quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 1,110 shares of the software company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 979 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.79% of the company’s stock.

Adobe Price Performance

ADBE opened at $293.25 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $328.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $341.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Adobe Inc. has a 1 year low of $284.60 and a 1 year high of $465.70. The stock has a market cap of $120.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.55, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.53.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The software company reported $5.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.40 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.11 billion. Adobe had a return on equity of 61.28% and a net margin of 30.00%.The business’s revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.81 earnings per share. Adobe has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 5.850-5.900 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 23.300-23.500 EPS. Analysts forecast that Adobe Inc. will post 16.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer lowered Adobe from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Adobe from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Adobe in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Adobe in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Adobe from $480.00 to $450.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Adobe currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $397.19.

Key Stories Impacting Adobe

Here are the key news stories impacting Adobe this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Airtel partnership expands Adobe Express distribution to hundreds of millions of users, a large user‑growth and awareness catalyst that could help adoption and monetization in key markets. ‘Airtel, in Global First, Offers 360 Million Users Free Adobe Express Premium Access’
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data show effectively zero days to cover (odd/flat readings), indicating no clear short‑squeeze risk from current filings — the data don’t appear to be driving the move. (internal short‑interest entry)
• Neutral Sentiment: Apple’s new Creator Studio prompts discussion about competitive dynamics for creators; analysts see it as a different product rather than an immediate Adobe “killer,” but it raises long‑term competitive watchpoints. Apple’s Creator Studio Isn’t an Adobe Killer
• Negative Sentiment: Major brokerages (Goldman, BMO, Jefferies) issued downgrades on ADBE, which has directly pressured the stock as investors mark down near‑term expectations and valuation multiples. Goldman, BMO, and Jefferies Downgrade Adobe (ADBE)
• Negative Sentiment: Adobe disclosed insider selling: the CFO sold about $485k of stock. While single insider sales can be routine, the move adds to negative sentiment when combined with analyst downgrades. Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) CFO Sells $485,323.10 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Adobe’s acquisition of Semrush at a reported ~78% premium drew attention for being an expensive bolt‑on, raising questions about deal discipline and near‑term EPS/ROI impact. That concern is amplifying sell‑side caution. Adobe Acquired Semrush Holdings (SEMR) at a 78% premium

Insider Activity at Adobe

In related news, CFO Daniel Durn sold 1,646 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.85, for a total value of $485,323.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 41,995 shares in the company, valued at $12,382,225.75. This trade represents a 3.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

About Adobe

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.