Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 0.6% Following Insider Selling

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s stock price fell 0.6% on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $176.65 and last traded at $182.11. 2,168,408 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 3,570,415 shares. The stock had previously closed at $183.25.

Specifically, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 176,242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.04, for a total value of $31,730,609.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $195,596,176.16. This trade represents a 13.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 235,492 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total value of $43,170,393.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,159,581.28. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $188.00 to $212.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. BTIG Research boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $197.50 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $195.00 to $212.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.72.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 2.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $117.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $191.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $178.20.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter worth $1,156,000. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 231,566 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $79,149,000 after acquiring an additional 32,626 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at about $24,414,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.8% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 196,700 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $67,232,000 after purchasing an additional 7,291 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 50.1% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,147,215 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,075,718,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050,173 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.