Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. 2,028,035 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the previous session’s volume of 3,835,690 shares.The stock last traded at $396.08 and had previously closed at $392.89.

The network technology company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.12 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The company’s revenue was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.63 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $421.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $420.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $416.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Northland Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $370.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $403.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.99, for a total value of $30,022,832.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 618,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,680,932.85. The trade was a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total transaction of $3,484,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,983,359.33. The trade was a 24.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 254,252 shares of company stock worth $89,041,637. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter worth $25,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the third quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 177.4% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.6 %

The company has a fifty day moving average of $362.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $338.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $127.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 1.12.

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.