Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Bought by Summit Financial LLC

Summit Financial LLC increased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 96.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,914 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 7,811 shares during the quarter. Summit Financial LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $2,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 94.3% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 11,661 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $2,122,000 after purchasing an additional 5,658 shares in the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 108.1% during the fourth quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 21,354 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $3,886,000 after purchasing an additional 11,095 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 82.1% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,345,740 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $244,871,000 after buying an additional 606,778 shares in the last quarter. Mosley Wealth Management grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 116.2% in the fourth quarter. Mosley Wealth Management now owns 3,023 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $561,000 after buying an additional 1,625 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,883 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $707,000 after buying an additional 934 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $170.64 on Tuesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $132.50 and a 12-month high of $208.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $187.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $185.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.14, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.04.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $223.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $213.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.22, for a total transaction of $126,854.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 47,976 shares in the company, valued at $8,694,210.72. This represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.70, for a total value of $21,564,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 365,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,744,323.20. This represents a 24.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock valued at $204,315,811. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Palo Alto Networks 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.