Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Given New $450.00 Price Target at Needham & Company LLC

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its price target boosted by research analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $385.00 to $450.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the network technology company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price suggests a potential upside of 14.54% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. OTR Global restated a “negative” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Susquehanna increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $340.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $410.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $396.03.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $392.89 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $258.17 and a one year high of $408.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $362.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $338.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.92 billion, a PE ratio of 54.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 1.12.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.08. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 32.11%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.98, for a total value of $20,698,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 159,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $54,854,924.82. This trade represents a 27.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.50, for a total value of $11,970,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,115,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,926,027.50. This represents a 3.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 254,252 shares of company stock worth $89,041,637 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 34,318.2% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,259,063 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,113,948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,249,594 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 50.1% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,147,215 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,075,718,000 after buying an additional 1,050,173 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 1st quarter valued at $177,933,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter valued at about $174,124,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 444,100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 444,000 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $150,520,000 after buying an additional 444,100 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.