Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Up 3.2% Following Analyst Upgrade

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) shares shot up 3.2% during trading on Tuesday after Berenberg Bank upgraded the stock to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $177.63 and last traded at $174.96. 5,831,227 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 42% from the average session volume of 10,077,982 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.56.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $209.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Daiwa Securities Group reduced their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $212.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Mizuho set a $200.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.07.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total transaction of $177,540.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. This trade represents a 1.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $802,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Steph & Co. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% in the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 4.4%

The stock has a market cap of $141.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 95.70, a PEG ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $161.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.60.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. Research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.