Meeder Advisory Services Inc. Acquires 1,754 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 41.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,032 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,754 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $2,045,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PANW. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,572,098 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $8,118,190,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002,239 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,563,020,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,136,547 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $924,905,000 after acquiring an additional 30,013 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,814,881 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $799,792,000 after acquiring an additional 198,078 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,710,943 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $504,523,000 after acquiring an additional 137,514 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $334.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Westpark Capital reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $366.08.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $345.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $112.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.17, a PEG ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 1.13. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $224.64 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $336.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $311.87.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. Palo Alto Networks’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total transaction of $67,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,443,916. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $339.12, for a total transaction of $500,202.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 19,026 shares in the company, valued at $6,452,097.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total value of $67,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,443,916. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 464,075 shares of company stock valued at $154,029,567 in the last ninety days. 3.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.