LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. reduced its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 59.1% in the first quarter, leaving it with 19,377 shares worth approximately $3.3 million.
• Insiders sold 669,248 shares valued at $126.4 million over the last quarter, reflecting significant declines in positions for key executives.
• Analysts have varied price targets for Palo Alto Networks, with Wells Fargo increasing theirs to $235, while Guggenheim maintains a $130 sell rating.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. decreased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 59.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,377 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 28,004 shares during the period. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $3,306,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 156 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of PANW stock traded up $1.46 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $176.86. 11,932,780 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,553,770. The firm has a market cap of $117.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $192.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $186.63. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.15 and a fifty-two week high of $210.39.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total value of $99,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,632 shares in the company, valued at $1,640,080. This represents a 5.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total value of $1,009,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 101,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,414,099.75. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 669,248 shares of company stock worth $126,423,337 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PANW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Guggenheim reiterated a "sell" rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Stephens lowered Palo Alto Networks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group set a $185.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley set a $496.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $213.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $217.52.

Palo Alto Networks Company 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.