Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Acquired by Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 214.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,823 shares of the network technology company's stock after buying an additional 7,379 shares during the period. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $1,969,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 906 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 511 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 227,414 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total transaction of $39,281,220.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 317,571 shares of the company's stock, valued at $54,854,038.83. This represents a 41.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 568,962 shares of company stock valued at $96,933,690. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $186.14 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.01 and a 52 week high of $208.39. The stock has a market cap of $123.24 billion, a PE ratio of 104.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.02. The company's 50-day moving average price is $178.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $185.33.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. HSBC raised shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $156.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.

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