Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading 1.3% Higher

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) traded up 1.3% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $350.23 and last traded at $349.49. 297,053 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 4,265,143 shares. The stock had previously closed at $345.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Northland Securities lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Argus upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $416.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $366.08.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $336.11 and a 200-day moving average of $311.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 125,866 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total value of $42,165,110.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 166,542 shares in the company, valued at $55,791,570. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 125,866 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total transaction of $42,165,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 166,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,791,570. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total transaction of $67,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,443,916. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 464,075 shares of company stock worth $154,029,567. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $29,065,000. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $8,489,000. Brown Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,828,000. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 255.8% in the second quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 2,003 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $679,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440 shares during the period. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at $258,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.