Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading Up 2.5%

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) was up 2.5% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $338.39 and last traded at $338.00. Approximately 508,728 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 4,219,435 shares. The stock had previously closed at $329.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PANW. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $325.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $334.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $366.08.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.0 %

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $336.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.44, a PEG ratio of 5.04 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 32.11%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.93, for a total value of $17,755,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 159,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,055,533.37. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total value of $3,484,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 31,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,983,359.33. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.93, for a total transaction of $17,755,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,055,533.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 464,075 shares of company stock valued at $154,029,567 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $29,065,000. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,489,000. Brown Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,828,000. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 255.8% during 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 acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $258,000. 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.