Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Sold by Cozad Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Cozad Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 30.1%, selling 3,487 shares and bringing their total ownership to 8,108 shares worth approximately $1.38 million.
• Palo Alto Networks stock is currently facing mixed analyst ratings, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and various price targets ranging from $130 to $221.
• Insider trading activity was notable, with EVP Nir Zuk selling 100,000 shares for approximately $19.87 million, while insiders collectively sold over 569,000 shares valued at $111 million in the last three months.

Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 30.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,108 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 3,487 shares during the quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $1,384,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Csenge Advisory Group boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 2,271 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,047 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $691,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 2,310 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JDM Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC now owns 322 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW traded down $0.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $172.88. 16,231,498 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,904,851. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $196.32 and a 200-day moving average of $187.19. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.01 and a 52 week high of $210.39. The stock has a market cap of $115.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 98.79, a PEG ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 0.97.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 526 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $99,940.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,640,080. This represents a 5.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.00, for a total transaction of $122,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 41,433 shares in the company, valued at $8,452,332. This trade represents a 1.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 569,248 shares of company stock worth $111,279,829. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $221.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. HSBC upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $156.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Stephens lowered shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and twenty-six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $209.61.

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.