Rathbones Group PLC Sells 11,378 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Rathbones Group PLC trimmed its Palo Alto Networks stake by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 11,378 shares and leaving it with 857,605 shares valued at about $158 million.
• Palo Alto Networks recently reported better-than-expected earnings, posting $1.03 EPS versus $0.94 expected and revenue of $2.59 billion, up 14.9% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish: several firms raised price targets to as high as $275, and the consensus rating on PANW is still Moderate Buy.

Rathbones Group PLC cut its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 857,605 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 11,378 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC owned approximately 0.12% of Palo Alto Networks worth $157,971,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $246.66 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.54. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $250.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.27 billion, a PE ratio of 136.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.66 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575 over the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on PANW shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $209.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Citizens Jmp restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $225.16.

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $270 from $200 and kept an outperform rating, signaling confidence that the stock can continue higher. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley increased its target to $253 from $223 and maintained an overweight rating, adding to the cluster of bullish analyst calls. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus boosted its target to $275 from $185 and reiterated a buy rating, reinforcing expectations for further upside in PANW shares. The Fly
• Positive Sentiment: Truist Financial also raised its price target to $275 from $200 and kept a buy rating, indicating broad analyst enthusiasm for Palo Alto Networks’ growth outlook. MarketScreener
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary about AI reshaping cybersecurity and articles highlighting PANW as a cybersecurity stock to watch support the long-term theme, but they do not appear to be immediate stock-moving catalysts. ETF Trends

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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