Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY Raises Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY grew its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 13,695 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $4,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.6% in the first 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 during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 8.5% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,243,457 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,099,564,000 after purchasing an additional 255,060 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 7.6% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,814,881 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $799,792,000 after purchasing an additional 198,078 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 5.4% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,233,918 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $757,321,000 after purchasing an additional 114,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 8.0% in the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,000,511 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $339,183,000 after purchasing an additional 73,922 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ PANW traded up $6.42 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $342.36. 2,037,059 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,121,362. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $233.81 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The company has a market capitalization of $110.86 billion, a PE ratio of 49.76, a PEG ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $337.94 and its 200-day moving average is $316.89.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.80 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Westpark Capital reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $369.26.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.41, for a total transaction of $64,682.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,014,746.62. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 125,866 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total value of $42,165,110.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 166,542 shares in the company, valued at $55,791,570. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.41, for a total transaction of $64,682.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,782 shares in the company, valued at $8,014,746.62. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 395,732 shares of company stock valued at $130,785,557. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

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.