Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Purchased by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 46.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 136,848 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,089 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $25,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,273 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $2,813,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at $36,239,000. Pathfinder Wealth Consulting Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at $492,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 376.0% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,195 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $4,457,000 after purchasing an additional 19,112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CFO4Life Group LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC now owns 1,180 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $217,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $146.87 per share, with a total value 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. This represents a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.95, for a total value of $94,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 82,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,604,295.20. The trade was a 0.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,076,355. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

PANW stock opened at $260.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $185.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.38. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $261.41. The company has a market cap of $212.63 billion, a PE ratio of 143.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 0.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on PANW shares. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $209.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.33.

Palo Alto Networks Company 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.