Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-two research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Eleven equities research 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 company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $326.29.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $327.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $405.00 to $385.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. 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 for the company. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.2 %

PANW stock opened at $341.20 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks has a fifty-two week low of $201.17 and a fifty-two week high of $380.84. The company has a market capitalization of $110.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.59, a PEG ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $309.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $307.63.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 31.42% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.38 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.04, for a total transaction of $16,082,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 174,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,659,063. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.04, for a total value of $16,082,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 174,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,659,063. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 322 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $99,820.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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 362,525 shares of company stock valued at $110,064,607 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,394,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 203.7% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 59,363 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $13,917,000 after purchasing an additional 39,817 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 22.8% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 5,338 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 991 shares during the period. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth $2,077,000. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.8% during the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 21,038 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $4,932,000 after purchasing an additional 971 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.