Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Up 2.2%

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price shot up 2.2% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $325.20 and last traded at $324.54. 429,374 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 4,444,313 shares. The stock had previously closed at $317.51.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PANW. Argus raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Thirteen investment 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $325.59.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $321.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $312.25. The company has a market cap of $105.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.17, a P/E/G ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

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 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.31, for a total transaction of $10,559,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,259,567 shares in the company, valued at $369,443,596.77. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,443,916. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 392,391 shares of company stock valued at $125,770,677 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 5.5% in the second quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,939 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $657,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Semus Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 14.7% in the second quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,140 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $725,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Fortress Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 13.5% in the second quarter. Fortress Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,993 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $669,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 26.0% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,360 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $800,000 after buying an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at $1,972,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.