Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) is Davis R M Inc.'s 8th Largest Position

Key Points

• Davis R M Inc. has reduced its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.0%, holding 708,706 shares worth approximately $120.9 million, representing 2.4% of its overall portfolio.
• Palo Alto Networks reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.80, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.77, with revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, reflecting a 15.3% year-over-year increase.
• The stock has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a target price averaging $209.42, indicating positive expectations for its future performance.

Davis R M Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 1.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 708,706 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 7,375 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for about 2.4% of Davis R M Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Davis R M Inc. owned about 0.11% of Palo Alto Networks worth $120,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 22.6% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 523,037 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $89,251,000 after buying an additional 96,581 shares during the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 9,978 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,703,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 331.9% in the 1st quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 6,220 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,061,000 after buying an additional 4,780 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 12,148 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,073,000 after buying an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 136.0% in the 1st quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,507 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $598,000 after buying an additional 2,021 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.6%

NASDAQ:PANW traded down $2.76 on Friday, hitting $170.84. The stock had a trading volume of 2,535,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,804,436. The business's fifty day moving average is $196.32 and its 200 day moving average is $187.19. The company has a market cap of $113.91 billion, a PE ratio of 97.50, a P/E/G ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 0.97. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.01 and a 52 week high of $210.39.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stephens downgraded Palo Alto Networks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim restated a "sell" rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Roth Capital assumed coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $209.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.27, for a total transaction of $22,858,894.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 293,010 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,458,002.70. This trade represents a 29.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.66, for a total value of $19,866,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,243,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $644,356,888.56. The trade was a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 569,248 shares of company stock valued at $111,279,829. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.