Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Sold by WD Rutherford LLC

WD Rutherford LLC cut its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 5.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,888 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 572 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks comprises approximately 1.6% of WD Rutherford LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. WD Rutherford LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $3,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 607.1% during the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 87.0% during the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 101 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 89.3% during the first quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 106 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ PANW traded down $1.81 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $339.01. The company had a trading volume of 4,172,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,168,419. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $307.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $307.14. The stock has a market cap of $109.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.27, a PEG ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 1.10. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $201.17 and a 52-week high of $380.84.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for 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 company’s revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.38 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 322 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $99,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,167,770. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total transaction of $497,517.32. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 20,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,292,166.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 322 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $99,820.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,167,770. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 258,182 shares of company stock worth $74,850,597 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Daiwa America raised shares of Palo Alto Networks to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $355.00 to $384.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.29.

Palo Alto Networks 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.