Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors reduced its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 5.6% in Q4, selling 13,194 shares and leaving it with 221,141 shares valued at about $40.73 million.
• CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares on March 27 at an average price of $146.87 (~$10.0M), boosting his holding to 343,394 shares (a ~24.7% increase).
• Palo Alto Networks beat EPS estimates ($1.03 vs. $0.94) and reported $2.59 billion in revenue (+14.9% YoY); analysts' consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $211.64.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 221,141 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 13,194 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $40,734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% in the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 152 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.2%

PANW opened at $183.68 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $164.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $180.69. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $223.61. The firm has a market cap of $149.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 101.48, a PEG ratio of 6.63 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (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 firm 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 company earned $0.81 EPS. Palo Alto Networks's revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $802,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,103,105. The trade was a 3.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $225.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Mizuho set a $200.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $211.64.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.