Everpure Stock Down Post Q4 Earnings: Buy, Stay Invested or Offload?

Core Insights - Everpure's (PSTG) shares initially rose by approximately 9% following the release of its fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results, driven by strong revenue growth in a robust AI demand environment, but subsequently fell by about 10% in the next trading session, resulting in a net decline of around 3% since the earnings release [1][10]. Financial Performance - PSTG reported non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) of 69 cents for Q4 fiscal 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 65 cents and up from 45 cents in the same quarter last year [5]. - Quarterly revenues increased by 20% year over year to $1.1 billion, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.5%, marking the company's first billion-dollar quarter [6][10]. - For the full fiscal year, revenues reached $3.7 billion, reflecting a 16% year-over-year growth [6]. Market Position and Competitors - PSTG's stock has increased by 25.7% over the past year, underperforming the Zacks Computer-Storage Devices industry's growth of 187.2% and the Zacks Computer & Technology sector's growth of 29.1%, but outperforming the S&P 500's gain of 20.3% [2]. - The company has outperformed NetApp, Inc. (NTAP) but underperformed Seagate Technology Holdings plc (STX) and Sandisk Corporation (SNDK) in the storage space [3]. Growth Drivers - The company is benefiting from strong enterprise demand, accelerating AI-driven demand, and expanding hyperscale momentum, with over 600 customers adopting its Enterprise Data Cloud (EDC) architecture within a year of its introduction [14]. - AI-focused offerings, such as FlashBlade//EXA, have achieved industry-leading benchmark performance, contributing to strong market interest and demand [15]. - Subscription revenues increased by 14% year over year, with annual recurring revenues (ARR) growing 16% to $1.9 billion, indicating strong momentum in subscription and recurring revenue streams [17]. Challenges and Concerns - Management expressed concerns about global supply-chain imbalances, rising NAND and CPU costs, and competition from hyperscaler-native storage offerings, which could impact profitability [1][18]. - The company implemented an average product price increase of approximately 20% to address rising input costs, with expectations for first-quarter product gross margins to be at the lower end of the typical range [19]. Future Outlook - For Q1 fiscal 2027, PSTG expects revenues between $990 million and $1.01 billion, representing about 28% year-over-year growth at the midpoint [13]. - The company anticipates total revenues for fiscal 2027 to be between $4.3 billion and $4.4 billion, suggesting an 18.8% year-over-year growth [13]. - PSTG's shares are currently trading at a forward price/earnings ratio of 85.17X, significantly higher than the industry's average of 19.13X [20].