Jefferies’ Top Crowded Software Short Positions: Top 9 Stocks

7. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q2 2024: 107

Shares Short % Of Outstanding: 1.48%

Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) is the software company that we discussed in depth in our introduction to this piece. If you’ve read the intro, you’d know that subscription-driven revenue and sustained customer growth and retention are key drivers of the firm’s hypothesis. Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE)’s shares have provided a mixed bag of performance in 2024 as they have seen multiple ups and downs due to shifting investor sentiment related first to its ability to integrate AI in its product portfolio and then its ability to generate a profit from its AI offerings. Consequently, Adobe Inc.’s (NASDAQ:ADBE) Firefly platform is central to its hypothesis and investors are watching with eagle eyes for any signs of increasing or decreasing profitability. The firm is making some interesting moves in AI lately, as it plans to train millions of people worldwide to use AI by 2030 and expand Firefly’s video capabilities.

Polen Capital mentioned Adobe Inc. (NASDAQ:ADBE) in its Q2 2024 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:

“With Adobe, in some ways, we see it as a microcosm of the market’s “shoot first, ask questions later” approach to categorizing AI winners and losers. In the early part of last year, Adobe came under pressure with a perception that generative AI (GenAI) would represent a material headwind to their suite of creative offerings. In short order, the company introduced its GenAI offering, Firefly, which shifted the narrative to Adobe as a beneficiary with a real opportunity to monetize GenAI in the near term. Earlier this year, that narrative was again challenged as the company reported a slight slowdown in revenue growth. Results in the most recent quarter were robust as the company raised its full-year forecast across a number of key metrics and showcased better-than-expected results.”