365,622 Shares in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Bought by PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab

Key Points

• PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab opened a new position in Palo Alto Networks of 365,622 shares valued at about $68.3 million, representing roughly 0.05% of the company at quarter-end.
• CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares for about $10.0 million, increasing his stake to 343,394 shares (a 24.73% rise), even as insiders have sold 30,356 shares (~$4.98 million) in the past 90 days.
• Analysts remain broadly positive with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.07, versus a recent share price near $181 and a market cap of about $147.8 billion.

PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 365,622 shares of the network technology company's stock, valued at approximately $68,316,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab owned 0.05% of Palo Alto Networks at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 147.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,761 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,230,000 after purchasing an additional 4,031 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 169.1% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 5,212 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,275 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 66.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,484 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 11,100.0% in the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 560 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 6.0% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,398 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $900,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total transaction of $177,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,434,276.78. This trade represents a 24.73% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of PANW opened at $181.10 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $147.78 billion, a PE ratio of 100.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.53 and a beta of 0.77. The company's fifty day moving average is $163.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $181.19. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $223.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. Palo Alto Networks's revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Mizuho set a $200.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.07.

Palo Alto Networks Profile

Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company's product portfolio includes next‑generation firewalls as a core on‑premises capability, alongside cloud‑delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.