MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Buys Shares of 796,375 Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. opened a new position in Palo Alto Networks, buying 796,375 shares (~$162.2 million), equal to about 0.12% of the company at the end of the quarter.
• Other large institutions boosted stakes—Vanguard added 1,253,589 shares to reach 65,269,963 shares and Amundi bought 708,332 shares—leaving institutional investors with roughly 79.82% ownership.
• Analysts show a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $210.19, though recent targets vary widely (from HSBC's $114 cut to Wedbush's $225).

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 796,375 shares of the network technology company's stock, valued at approximately $162,161,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. owned approximately 0.12% of Palo Alto Networks at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PANW. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,269,963 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $13,290,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253,589 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 11.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,906,963 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,202,776,000 after acquiring an additional 611,375 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,476,638 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $916,099,000 after purchasing an additional 54,601 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 0.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,037,320 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $822,079,000 after purchasing an additional 17,394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 25.1% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 3,532,201 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $750,875,000 after purchasing an additional 708,332 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. HSBC cut their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $157.00 to $114.00 in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $210.19.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW stock opened at $167.45 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $169.55 and a 200 day moving average of $189.35. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.57 and a 1-year high of $223.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $136.64 billion, a PE ratio of 92.51, a P/E/G ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.78.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,631,525. This trade represents a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 800 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.81, for a total transaction of $147,848.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 46,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,502,184.05. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 149,252 shares of company stock worth $27,888,535 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company's product portfolio includes next‑generation firewalls as a core on‑premises capability, alongside cloud‑delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.

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