Teacher Retirement System of Texas Boosts Stock Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 18.4% in Q4, owning 121,770 shares valued at about $22.43 million.
• Company insiders have been net sellers — directors James J. Goetz and John P. Key were among those who sold shares, with insiders offloading 30,356 shares worth $4.98 million in the past 90 days, leaving insiders owning 1.40% of the stock.
• Wall Street’s consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $210.07; Palo Alto beat quarterly EPS estimates ($1.03 vs. $0.94) and reported revenue up 14.9% year-over-year, while the stock trades around $178 (52-week range $139.57–$223.61).

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 121,770 shares of the network technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 18,887 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $22,430,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Steph & Co. boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 72.7% during the 3rd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 152 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the sale, the director directly owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John P. Key sold 1,572 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.32, for a total value of $272,459.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,466,400. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on PANW. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their target price 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. Three investment 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $210.07.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $178.54 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $223.61. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $161.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $145.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 98.64, a P/E/G ratio of 6.24 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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