B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 951,880 shares of the network technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,603 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks comprises about 1.5% of B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG owned about 0.14% of Palo Alto Networks worth $175,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 147.7% in 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 during the period. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,275 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 66.3% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,484 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 11,100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 560 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,398 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $900,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 price objective (down from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 target price (down from $235.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $215.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $210.07.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Palo Alto Networks
Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks
In related news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 over the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.6%
PANW stock opened at $181.20 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $161.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.60. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $223.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.86 billion, a PE ratio of 100.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 0.77.
Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.
About Palo Alto Networks
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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