Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading 1.3% Higher

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) rose 1.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $344.50 and last traded at $344.47. Approximately 540,424 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 4,206,753 shares. The stock had previously closed at $340.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Argus raised their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $366.08.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.7 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $336.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $313.57. The stock has a market cap of $110.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.07, a P/E/G ratio of 5.04 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 920 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Group Inc. grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.9% in the second quarter. Cascade Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,110 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Sepio Capital LP increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Sepio Capital LP now owns 944 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 1,479 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $420,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 41.2% during the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 120 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.