Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Price Target Raised to $300.00

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its target price raised by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $265.00 to $300.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the network technology company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 6.50% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on PANW. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $275.00 target price (up from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.91.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW stock opened at $281.69 on Monday. Palo Alto Networks has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $283.71. The company has a market cap of $229.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 155.63, a P/E/G ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $192.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $183.73.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John P. Key sold 1,572 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.32, for a total value of $272,459.04. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,466,400. This trade represents a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 93,660 shares of company stock valued at $21,346,475 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.