Meridian Wealth Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,485 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 2,512 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $6,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in 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 during the period. Luken Investment Analytics LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during 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 during the period. Finally, Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on PANW shares. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased 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 report on Wednesday, February 18th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $212.09.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $213.66 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $174.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 118.04, a PEG ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $223.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $168.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.57.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.