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Pure Storage Remains Valiant In Fierce Battle With EMC, NetApp

Tectonic shifts to cloud computing and flash storage make the time ripe to build a new storage franchise, with Pure Storage ( PSTG ) seen as an industry disruptor. Pacific Crest Securities analyst Brent Bracelin, in a new research note, says that Pure Storage has been able to sustain solid growth and market share gains despite legacy vendors such as EMC ( EMC ) and NetApp ( NTAP ) putting Pure Storage in their cross hairs. Bracelin’s report came as Pure Storage introduced several new products on Monday that expand its portfolio of storage systems, including products that integrate more tightly with server gear from Cisco Systems ( CSCO ). Pure Storage provides the $24 billion enterprise storage market with technology using flash chips, similar to the chips that smartphones use. Flash-based storage arrays are much faster than disk-drive storage systems but come at a higher price, depending on how the technology is deployed. Flash is seen as the future of storage, with the transition well underway but still in the early stages. “We believe these new products, coupled with continued declines in flash pricing to less than $1 per GB, should give Pure Storage the ammunition to sustain share-gain momentum into 2016,” Bracelin wrote. EMC and NetApp lead in the disk-storage systems market and also have expanded into flash-chip storage systems. NetApp and EMC, which Dell is acquiring, are much larger than Pure Storage, but the smaller company is growing much faster. It has yet to turn a profit, however. Storage Ready For Revolutionary Changes Pure Storage revenue has zoomed from $6 million in 2013 to $440 million for its fiscal 2016 ended Jan. 31. But the company has posted big losses as it spends heavily on research and development and on marketing to grow market share. Pure Storage kept its string of triple-digit revenue growth alive on March 2, when it posted fourth-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street estimates, as did its Q1 outlook. Company CEO Scott Dietzen says that the data storage industry is on the cusp of a revolutionary change that Pure aims to lead. But a recent report from Summit Research said that while Pure Storage has cutting-edge data technology, it will face an uphill battle trying to dislodge EMC and NetApp. Bracelin has an overweight rating on Pure Storage stock and a price target of 24. Pure Storage stock was near 12.50, in midday trading on the stock market today — down 3% despite the bullish research note. Pure raised $425 million with its initial public offering on Oct. 7, pricing shares at 17. The stock peaked at 20.60 on Oct. 15 and hit a low of 11.05 on Feb 8. “While execution risks remain elevated as legacy vendors attempt to grab share by discounting storage pricing, a solid track record of execution since the October 2015 IPO increases our confidence that Pure Storage can sustain solid momentum and share gains,” Bracelin wrote. Image provided by Shutterstock .

Pure Storage Maintains Hot Streak As Q4 Earnings, Q1 Outlook Beat

Pure Storage ( PSTG ) kept its string of triple-digit revenue growth alive and posted fourth-quarter earnings after the close Wednesday that beat Wall Street estimates, as did its Q1 outlook. Pure Storage reported revenue of $150.2 million, up 128% from the year-earlier quarter and soundly beating the consensus estimate of $138.6 million. It was the ninth quarter in a row of triple-digit gains. The company reported a per-share loss minus items of 12 cents, vs. the consensus estimate for a 16-cent loss, as polled by Thomson Reuters, for the period ended Jan. 31. Pure Storage stock, which rose 5% to 15.71 in regular trading, was up another 5% in after-hours trading, after the company released its earnings. For Q1, Pure Storage forecast revenue of $135 million to $139 million, above the $130.5 million analyst consensus. For the year, Pure Storage expects revenue of $685 million to $725 million. The consensus is $667 million. “We delivered our best ever quarter in Q4, concluding another record setting year for Pure Storage,” company CEO Scott Dietzen said in the earnings release . “The business continues to run on all cylinders, fueled by the rapid worldwide adoption of FlashArray combined with improved operating efficiency as we scale.” The company grew its customer base by more than 120% over the past year to more than 1,650 organizations, it said. Pure Storage provides flash-chip-based storage systems for the enterprise market, a cutting-edge technology that is making life difficult for storage leaders EMC ( EMC ) and NetApp ( NTAP ). CEO Dietzen says that the data storage industry is on the cusp of a revolutionary change that Pure aims to lead. But a recent report from Summit Research said that while Pure Storage has cutting-edge data technology, it will face an uphill battle trying to dislodge EMC and NetApp.

Pure Storage Riding Hot Spell Into Its Q4 Earnings Report Today

Pure Storage ( PSTG ) stock was up for the fifth day in a row ahead of its fourth-quarter earnings set for release today after the close. Pure Storage is a provider of flash-chip-based storage systems for the enterprise market, a cutting-edge technology that is making life difficult for storage leaders EMC ( EMC )and NetApp ( NTAP ). Pure Storage CEO Scott Dietzen says the data storage industry is on the cusp of a revolutionary change that it aims to lead. He says Pure Storage is one of the fastest-growing tech companies in history. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company launched its first product in May 2012 and has posted triple-digit revenue growth for at least eight quarters in a row. Make that nine, if Pure Storage holds onto its brisk revenue-growth pace. The consensus estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters call for Q4 revenue of $138.6 million, up 110% from the year-earlier quarter. But that rapid growth has come at a cost, as Pure Storage is pouring big sums into sales and marketing, and research and development, in an aggressive bid to expand market share. The company is expected to post a loss of 16 cents a share, compared with a 25-cent loss last Q4. Pure Storage stock was up 1.2%, near 15, in afternoon trading in the stock market today , and Wednesday touched its 2016 high. Pure Storage made its initial public offering in October, raising $425 million by pricing 25 million shares at 17. A recent report from Summit Research said that while Pure Storage has cutting-edge data technology, it will face an uphill battle trying to dislodge EMC and NetApp. EMC on Feb. 29 announced new products that it called “a quantum leap in flash storage.” EMC said it will commit to all-flash for its primary storage offerings, “relegating traditional disk to bulk and archive storage requirements.” In October, EMC has agreed to be acquired by Dell for $67 billion, a deal that is not yet completed. In December, NetApp announced that it will pay $870 million in cash to acquire SolidFire, a provider of storage systems that are based on flash-memory chips.