What Happened?
Shares of enterprise technology company Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) jumped 3.4% in the afternoon session after Barclays raised its price target on the stock to $26 from $24, maintaining an overweight rating. The analyst's increased optimism follows HPE's recent completion of its acquisition of Juniper Networks, a leader in AI-native networking. This strategic purchase is significant as it doubles the size of HPE's networking business and strengthens its portfolio to better compete in the high-growth artificial intelligence (AI) and hybrid cloud markets. Barclays noted that the acquisition should lead to better growth opportunities and improved gross margins for the enterprise technology giant. The firm anticipates the enhanced position in the networking industry could drive double-digit earnings per share for HPE by fiscal year 2027.
After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $21.28, up 2.3% from previous close.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s shares are very volatile and have had 23 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise is down 0.9% since the beginning of the year, and at $21.28 per share, it is trading 12.8% below its 52-week high of $24.42 from January 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $2,299.
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