Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has received a **consensus rating of "Moderate Buy"** from 41 analysts, with 26 buy recommendations and an average target price of **$209.61**.
• Insider trades revealed significant sell-offs, with EVP **Dipak Golechha** selling 5,000 shares for over $1 million, and EVP **Lee Klarich** selling 120,774 shares valued at approximately $20.7 million.
• Palo Alto Networks reported a **15.3% increase in revenue** year-over-year, achieving $2.29 billion for the last quarter, and **$0.80 EPS**, surpassing forecasts.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the forty-one analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation and twenty-six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $209.6128.

PANW has been the topic of several research reports. Roth Capital started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price objective on the stock. HSBC raised Palo Alto Networks from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $156.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. TD Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Northland Securities reduced their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $210.00 to $177.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total transaction of $1,009,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 101,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,414,099.75. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.58, for a total transaction of $20,722,402.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 206,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,468,674.44. This represents a 36.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 669,248 shares of company stock valued at $126,423,337 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 6,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 156 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of PANW stock opened at $168.10 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $112.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.94. Palo Alto Networks has a 12-month low of $144.15 and a 12-month high of $210.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $194.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $187.03.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 13.95%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. Palo Alto Networks's revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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