Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 0.5% on Insider Selling

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) traded down 0.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $370.70 and last traded at $371.90. 346,406 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 4,049,472 shares. The stock had previously closed at $373.91.

Specifically, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.99, for a total value of $30,022,832.14. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 618,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,680,932.85. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $376.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Northland Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $373.28.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 0.8 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $121.80 billion, a PE ratio of 54.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $346.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $321.63.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 32.11%. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. First PREMIER Bank boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 95 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% in the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 89.3% in the 1st quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 106 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.