Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading Up 1.6% – Here’s Why

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) rose 1.6% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $163.31 and last traded at $163.21. Approximately 4,346,736 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 10,406,039 shares. The stock had previously closed at $160.67.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $209.95.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 1.6%

The company has a market cap of $133.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 90.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.78 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $162.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $186.54.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business’s revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,434,276.78. This trade represents a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 52,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,631,525. This trade represents a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 144,252 shares of company stock worth $26,947,635 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company’s product portfolio includes next‑generation firewalls as a core on‑premises capability, alongside cloud‑delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.