6,652 Shares in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Bought by Sun Financial Inc

Key Points

• Sun Financial acquired a new position of 6,652 shares in Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) in Q4, valued at about $1.225 million according to its latest 13F filing.
• CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares on March 27 at an average $146.87 (≈$10.0M), increasing his holding by 24.73%, while insiders overall still own only about 1.40% of the company.
• Palo Alto reported Q results of $1.03 EPS (vs. $0.94 est.) and $2.59B revenue (up 14.9% YoY), and analysts carry a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target near $210.07.

Sun Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,652 shares of the network technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,225,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% in the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 152 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW opened at $181.10 on Monday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $163.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.00. The firm has a market cap of $147.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 100.05, a PEG ratio of 6.53 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $223.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $802,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,103,105. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PANW shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Benchmark started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson set a $190.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Argus raised Palo Alto Networks to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $210.07.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.

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