Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Up 0.7%

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) rose 0.7% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $341.95 and last traded at $341.52. Approximately 915,094 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 4,814,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at $339.01.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on PANW. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Citigroup upped their price target 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. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $335.00 to $364.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, June 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.29.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $110.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.64, a P/E/G ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $307.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $307.11.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted 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. 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%. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director John P. Key sold 2,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.41, for a total transaction of $660,601.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,639 shares in the company, valued at $3,860,076.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director John P. Key sold 2,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.41, for a total transaction of $660,601.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,639 shares in the company, valued at $3,860,076.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.21, for a total transaction of $240,168.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 166,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,997,573.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 258,182 shares of company stock worth $74,850,597. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% in the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 607.1% in the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 87.0% in the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 101 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by 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.