Insider Selling: Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Director Sells 2,163 Shares of Stock

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Director John P. Key sold 2,163 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.41, for a total value of $660,601.83. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,860,076.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $7.15 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $309.05. 2,891,336 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,022,530. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.17 and a fifty-two week high of $380.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $294.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $304.09. The company has a market capitalization of $100.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.11.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 32.74% and a net margin of 31.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 607.1% during the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 87.0% in the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 101 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital cut shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Northland Securities cut Palo Alto Networks from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $275.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Susquehanna increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Palo Alto Networks to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $322.78.

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.