Mechanics Bank Trust Department Has $1.09 Million Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 15.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,828 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $1,088,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PANW. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 40.8% during the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,835 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 9.7% in the third quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,757 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter valued at approximately $6,798,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 23.0% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 42,381 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $9,936,000 after acquiring an additional 7,921 shares during the period. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 78.1% in the third quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 18,044 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $4,230,000 after acquiring an additional 7,911 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 121,276 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.60, for a total transaction of $36,334,289.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 166,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,895,983.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total transaction of $497,517.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 20,501 shares in the company, valued at $6,292,166.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 121,276 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.60, for a total value of $36,334,289.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 166,542 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,895,983.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 258,182 shares of company stock worth $74,850,597. 3.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $322.68 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $201.17 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The firm has a market cap of $104.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.90, a PEG ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $303.68 and its 200 day moving average is $306.50.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 32.74% and a net margin of 31.42%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.38 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PANW shares. Redburn Atlantic raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $375.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on 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, Citigroup lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $324.17.

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.