Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) CEO Nikesh Arora Sells 66,668 Shares

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) CEO Nikesh Arora sold 66,668 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.54, for a total transaction of $22,436,448.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 694,228 shares in the company, valued at $233,635,491.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.2 %

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $341.20 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $309.18 and a 200-day moving average of $307.63. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $201.17 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.59, a PEG ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on PANW. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $335.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.29.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased 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 worth $28,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 607.1% in the 4th quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 87.0% in the 4th quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 101 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.