China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 5,774 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 13.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,653 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,774 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks accounts for 0.8% of China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $8,473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 104.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,233,907 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $11,142,122,000 after acquiring an additional 31,281,359 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 87.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,382,116 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,611,013,000 after acquiring an additional 6,725,148 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 83.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 8,427,062 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,533,419,000 after purchasing an additional 3,841,359 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 133.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,842,647 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,427,048,000 after purchasing an additional 4,486,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,277,739 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,324,387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,631 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on PANW. Guggenheim reiterated a "sell" rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $235.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $221.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $208.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.36, for a total transaction of $19,336,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,343,516 shares in the company, valued at $646,502,253.76. This represents a 2.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.27, for a total value of $22,858,894.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 293,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,458,002.70. The trade was a 29.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 547,948 shares of company stock worth $103,462,223. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 2.3%

PANW opened at $201.50 on Monday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $193.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $185.39. The company has a market capitalization of $134.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.14, a PEG ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.97. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.01 and a 52 week high of $208.39.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 13.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Palo Alto Networks Profile

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.

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