Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Acquires 11,118 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Stanley Laman Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 32.6%, buying 11,118 shares to hold 45,265 shares worth about $8.34 million, making PANW its 19th-largest holding (≈1.1% of the fund).
• CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares at roughly $146.87 (~$10.0 million), raising his direct ownership to 343,394 shares (a 24.73% increase), while other insiders have also traded the stock.
• Palo Alto Networks topped quarterly estimates (EPS $1.03 vs. $0.94; revenue $2.59B, +14.9% YoY), but analysts have lowered some price targets; the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average target of $209.95.

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 32.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,265 shares of the network technology company's stock after buying an additional 11,118 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks accounts for about 1.1% of Stanley Laman Group Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $8,338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Castellan Group acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,893,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,847 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Greenup Street Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,639 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $3,986,000 after buying an additional 3,968 shares during the period. Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 29,670 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $5,544,000 after buying an additional 790 shares during the period. Finally, Dara Capital US Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,063,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $155.73 on Monday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $160.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.49. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $223.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.04, a PEG ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Daiwa Securities Group reduced their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $212.00 to $175.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 price objective (down from $235.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $209.95.

Insider Activity

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. This trade represents a 24.73% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company 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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