Collins Stewart: 3 out of Last 4 Q's for NetApp Have Been Disappointing

According to a research report published today by Collins Stewart, NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) will report its January quarter this Wednesday after market close.

In the report, Collins Stewart noted that, “e. The company's results have been below Street expectations three of the past four quarters. In the July qtr, NetApp's Federal and Financial segments were weak. In the October qtr, it was 9 of their largest 46 accounts. Our recent checks suggest that some of the issues circle back to competition from EMC especially with its VNX & VNXe products. We are not expecting that that this is the break-out quarter for NetApp, but that the competition seems to be getting tougher, not easier, thus we retain our Neutral rating and wait to see when the company can return to double-digit organic growth.”

Collins Stewart maintains its $40 PT on NetApp, which closed Friday at $39.69.