Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Purchased by Whittier Trust Co.

Whittier Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 130.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,094 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,553 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $2,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2,933.3% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 91 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 246.3% during the 4th quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.22, for a total value of $126,854.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 47,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,694,210.72. This represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 490,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total transaction of $89,532,411.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,214,409.80. This trade represents a 31.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock worth $204,315,811. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $182.32 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $185.00. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $132.50 and a twelve month high of $208.39. The stock has a market cap of $120.71 billion, a PE ratio of 102.72, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.04.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. Research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $190.00 target price (down from $207.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Westpark Capital reissued a “hold” rating and set a $196.40 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.06.

Palo Alto Networks 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.