EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd Grows Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 100.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,850 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 24,425 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for 2.6% of EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $8,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 104.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,233,907 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $11,142,122,000 after purchasing an additional 31,281,359 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $2,611,013,000 after purchasing an additional 6,725,148 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted 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 during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 133.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,842,647 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,427,048,000 after purchasing an additional 4,486,654 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,277,739 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,324,387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,631 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $187.04. 1,885,177 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,598,446. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.72 billion, a PE ratio of 105.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.02. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $142.01 and a 12-month high of $208.39. The business's 50-day moving average is $178.09 and its 200-day moving average is $185.18.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.28 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 21.93% and a net margin of 14.64%. Palo Alto Networks's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 227,414 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $39,281,220.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 317,571 shares in the company, valued at $54,854,038.83. This represents a 41.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.27, for a total value of $22,858,894.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 293,010 shares of the company's stock, 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 90 days, insiders sold 568,962 shares of company stock worth $96,933,690. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Westpark Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $196.40 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Roth Capital started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $223.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $221.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised Palo Alto Networks from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $206.40.

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.