Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 85,481 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas decreased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 36.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 150,993 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 85,481 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $25,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 156 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. now owns 150 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. HSBC raised Palo Alto Networks from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $156.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $213.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Roth Capital started coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $221.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.14, for a total value of $23,567,838.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 264,246 shares in the company, valued at $51,564,964.44. This represents a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total transaction of $1,009,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 101,135 shares in the company, valued at $20,414,099.75. This trade represents a 4.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 668,722 shares of company stock worth $121,714,798. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.3%

PANW traded up $4.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $201.50. 2,561,725 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,398,532. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $142.01 and a one year high of $208.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $193.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $185.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.36 billion, a PE ratio of 115.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.97.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.28 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 19.48%. Palo Alto Networks's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.