Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Trading 2.4% Higher – Should You Buy?

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) shares traded up 2.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $173.53 and last traded at $172.46. 858,417 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 5,885,171 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.34.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Stephens started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $205.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, March 31st. HSBC raised Palo Alto Networks from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $156.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $217.50 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.52.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $114.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.78, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $181.67 and its 200-day moving average is $184.84.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 490,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total transaction of $89,532,411.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares in the company, valued at $198,214,409.80. This represents a 31.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 99,707 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total value of $18,191,542.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 358,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,353,042.65. The trade was a 21.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,039,318 shares of company stock valued at $181,925,602 over the last 90 days. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 246.3% in the fourth 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. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 97.3% during the fourth quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. 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.