Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW is Heritage Investors Management Corp's 6th Largest Position

Key Points

• Heritage Investors Management Corp slightly reduced its Palo Alto Networks stake by 0.8% in the fourth quarter but still held 560,458 shares worth about $103.2 million, making PANW its 6th largest position.
• Insider trading was mixed: CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares, while CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares worth nearly $10 million, a notable vote of confidence.
• Wall Street remains bullish on Palo Alto Networks, with multiple analysts raising price targets and the stock trading near its 12-month high after a strong earnings report that beat EPS and revenue expectations.

Heritage Investors Management Corp cut its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 560,458 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 4,594 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks makes up about 3.0% of Heritage Investors Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Heritage Investors Management Corp owned approximately 0.08% of Palo Alto Networks worth $103,236,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% in the third quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total transaction of $177,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares in the company, valued at $13,418,150.40. This trade represents a 1.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Argus upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. New Street Research lowered their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, HSBC lowered their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $157.00 to $114.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $226.33.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.5%

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $252.92 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.57 and a 12 month high of $253.10. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $181.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.77. The firm has a market cap of $206.38 billion, a PE ratio of 139.73, a P/E/G ratio of 8.89 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.81 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Palo Alto Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $285 from $235 and kept an overweight rating, reinforcing a bullish outlook on the stock. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus also lifted its target to $275 and reiterated a buy rating, while BMO and Morgan Stanley recently boosted their targets as well, signaling broader Wall Street confidence in PANW’s growth outlook. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: At Jefferies’ attended Ignite On Tour event, customers showed strong interest in Palo Alto’s AI security products, including Prisma AIRS, XSIAM, Portkey, and Koi Security, suggesting the company’s AI strategy is gaining traction. Proactive Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary also highlighted rising demand for AI security as a potential long-term growth driver, which could support continued multiple expansion if adoption accelerates. Zacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Josh Brown added Palo Alto Networks to his “best stocks in the market” list, which adds to the positive sentiment around cybersecurity names, though it is more of a watchlist/endorsement signal than a direct business catalyst. Invezz

Palo Alto Networks 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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