Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Bought by Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd.

Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 250.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,960 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 7,120 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks comprises about 7.8% of Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $3,377,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of PANW. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW traded up $4.51 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $362.72. 2,988,576 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,892,995. The stock has a market cap of $117.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.72, a PEG ratio of 4.82 and a beta of 1.14. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $224.64 and a twelve month high of $380.84. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $333.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $310.72.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its 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 firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PANW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $364.08.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.31, for a total value of $10,559,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,259,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,443,596.77. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,443,916. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.31, for a total value of $10,559,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,259,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,443,596.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 376,372 shares of company stock valued at $121,925,593. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.