Greystone Financial Group LLC Buys 4,534 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Greystone Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 98.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,154 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,534 shares during the quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $1,666,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Elite Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 100.3% in the 4th quarter. Elite Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,346 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 101.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 3,560 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $648,000 after acquiring an additional 1,790 shares in the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 90.2% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,376 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,888,000 after purchasing an additional 4,920 shares during the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 101.0% during the fourth quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 19,119 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $3,479,000 after purchasing an additional 9,606 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at $328,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW stock opened at $191.03 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $132.50 and a 1-year high of $208.39. The company has a market cap of $126.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 107.62, a PEG ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $187.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.95.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.70, for a total value of $21,564,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 365,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,744,323.20. This trade represents a 24.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 336,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.70, for a total transaction of $65,081,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,643,516 shares in the company, valued at $705,730,831.62. The trade was a 8.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,458,864 shares of company stock valued at $269,397,331. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PANW has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JMP Securities boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $192.50 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $180.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $195.00 to $212.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.69.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.