Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 0.5%

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price traded down 0.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $322.00 and last traded at $325.13. 366,666 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 4,476,750 shares. The stock had previously closed at $326.81.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $327.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $384.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $325.59.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.4 %

The company has a market cap of $102.81 billion, a PE ratio of 46.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $321.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $312.25.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 31.42% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total value of $67,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,443,916. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 121,276 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.60, for a total transaction of $36,334,289.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 166,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,895,983.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 392,391 shares of company stock worth $125,770,677. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 607.1% in the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.