Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Bought by LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI raised its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 3.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,043 shares of the network technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $8,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 104.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 31,281,359 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 87.8% during 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 lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $1,533,419,000 after buying an additional 3,841,359 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 133.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,842,647 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,427,048,000 after buying an additional 4,486,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in 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 worth $1,324,387,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,631 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW traded up $2.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $197.12. 4,812,300 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,551,466. The stock has a market cap of $131.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 111.05, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.02. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $142.01 and a fifty-two week high of $208.39. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $178.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.88.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. Palo Alto Networks's revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on PANW shares. HSBC raised Palo Alto Networks from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $156.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $213.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $208.00.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 227,414 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 317,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,854,038.83. The trade was a 41.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 568,962 shares of company stock worth $96,933,690. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

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.