Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Grows Stock Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.2% in Q4, buying 21,310 shares to hold 997,868 shares (about 0.14% of the company) valued at approximately $185.22 million.
• Palo Alto Networks topped EPS and revenue estimates for the quarter (EPS $1.03 vs. $0.94; revenue $2.59B, up 14.9% YoY), has a market cap of about $142.8 billion, and carries a consensus analyst rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $210.07.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently—including Director James J. Goetz and EVP Dipak Golechha—with 30,356 shares sold in the last quarter (about $4.98 million); company insiders now own roughly 1.40% of shares.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 997,868 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,310 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.14% of Palo Alto Networks worth $185,221,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 72.7% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of PANW opened at $174.96 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $223.61. The company has a market cap of $142.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.66, a P/E/G ratio of 6.12 and a beta of 0.77. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $160.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.81 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PANW shares. Argus raised shares of Palo Alto Networks to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Three investment 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $210.07.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,631,525. This represents a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,103,105. The trade was a 3.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks 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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