United Capital Management of KS Inc. Increases Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Key Points

• United Capital Management of KS Inc. increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 6.6%, acquiring an additional 5,435 shares, bringing its total holdings to 87,567 shares valued at approximately $14.4 million.
• Insider activity includes significant sales by executives, with Nir Zuk selling 100,000 shares for about $17.28 million and Lee Klarich selling 120,774 shares for approximately $23.57 million, reducing their ownership percentages.
• Despite mixed ratings from analysts, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus target price of $217.01, with a recent upgrade from Piper Sandler to an "overweight" rating at a target of $225.00.

United Capital Management of KS Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,567 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,435 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks comprises about 3.0% of United Capital Management of KS Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. United Capital Management of KS Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $14,431,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Csenge Advisory Group raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.4% in the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 2,271 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.4% in the first quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,047 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $691,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Crew Capital Management Ltd. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.5% in the first quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 2,310 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, JDM Financial Group LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC now owns 322 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $225.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research 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 price target for the company. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $221.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $217.79.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $3.54 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $177.09. The stock had a trading volume of 9,535,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,219,376. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 101.19, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.94. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.15 and a 1-year high of $210.39. The stock's fifty day moving average is $192.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.42.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 13.95%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.80, for a total transaction of $17,280,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,143,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $543,199,564.80. This trade represents a 3.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total value of $1,009,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 101,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 quarter, insiders sold 669,248 shares of company stock worth $126,423,337. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.