Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Position Reduced by Middleton & Co. Inc. MA

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA decreased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 98,132 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 5,472 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for approximately 2.0% of Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $16,745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 133.7% during 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 purchasing an additional 4,486,654 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 83.8% during 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 last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 98.0% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 6,158,580 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,120,615,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047,625 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 92.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,951,283 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,082,895,000 after acquiring an additional 2,862,718 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 18,802.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,410,290 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $411,292,000 after acquiring an additional 2,397,539 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on PANW shares. Barclays lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $213.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Stephens downgraded Palo Alto Networks from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Palo Alto Networks from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Northland Securities reduced their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $210.00 to $177.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and twenty-six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $209.61.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $171.00 on Tuesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $142.01 and a one year high of $210.39. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $195.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $187.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.02 billion, a PE ratio of 97.71, a PEG ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 0.94.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. The business 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 13.95% and a return on equity of 19.48%. The firm's revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.86, for a total transaction of $24,258,665.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 235,482 shares in the company, valued at $47,298,914.52. The trade was a 33.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.66, for a total transaction of $19,866,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,243,516 shares in the company, valued at $644,356,888.56. This trade represents a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 448,474 shares of company stock worth $88,420,934. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

About Palo Alto Networks

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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