Adobe Inc.
Adobe Prepares for AI-Driven Era
Adobe's board unanimously selected Chakravarthy after what lead independent director Frank Calderoni called a "rigorous selection process."
Narayen said Chakravarthy has the experience and knowledge needed to lead Adobe in an AI-driven era. Meanwhile, Chakravarthy said he plans to drive growth in agentic software across creativity, productivity and customer experience.
Chakravarthy joined Adobe in January 2020 to lead its Digital Experience business. He later took responsibility for worldwide field operations and became president of Digital Experience in December 2021.
During his tenure, Chakravarthy helped expand Adobe's customer experience business. He also led products including Adobe CX Enterprise, GenStudio and Brand Visibility. In addition, he supported the acquisitions and integration of Workfront and Semrush.
Before joining Adobe, Chakravarthy served as CEO of Informatica for four years. He previously held executive roles at Symantec and VeriSign and worked at McKinsey & Co.
Earnings Ahead
Adobe stock fell in Friday's premarket trading as investors looked ahead to the company's Sept. 10 earnings report. Wall Street expects Adobe to report earnings of $5.84 per share on revenue of $6.70 billion, up from $5.31 and $5.99 billion, respectively, a year earlier.
With the report six days away, traders may be reluctant to make large bets before getting a clearer view of the company's growth and outlook. As a result, technical levels could play a bigger role in near-term trading.
Adobe remains above several key moving averages. The stock is about 0.2% above its 20-day simple moving average of $274.05 and 2.4% above its 200-day SMA of $268.23.
It also trades about 11% above its 50-day SMA and 12.8% above its 100-day SMA. That suggests the stock has made a strong recovery, although it could consolidate after those gains.
Momentum has weakened. The MACD is below its signal line, while the histogram is negative. That indicates buying momentum has cooled.
The moving-average setup also remains mixed. The 20-day SMA is above the 50-day SMA, which supports the short-term trend. However, the 50-day SMA remains below the 200-day SMA, signaling longer-term resistance.
Resistance sits near $275.50, while support is around $251.
Analyst Outlook
Adobe carries a Hold consensus rating with an average price forecast of $268.55.
Barclays raised its price forecast to $295 and maintained an Equal-Weight rating Thursday. RBC Capital raised its forecast to $315 with an Outperform rating Wednesday. Citigroup lifted its forecast to $301 while maintaining a Neutral rating Tuesday.
Price Action
Adobe shares fell 3.30% to $276.31 in Friday's premarket trading, according to Benzinga Pro data.
