Capstone Capital Management Ltd Invests $828,000 in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Capstone Capital Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 4,494 shares of the network technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $828,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,929,063 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $12,512,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,659,100 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,736,916 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $6,055,031,000 after purchasing an additional 505,924 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 0.5% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,528,248 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,532,902,000 after purchasing an additional 36,511 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 11.5% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,906,963 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,202,776,000 after buying an additional 611,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,356,617 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $802,691,000 after buying an additional 319,751 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Palo Alto Networks

Here are the key news stories impacting Palo Alto Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $265 from $200 and reiterated an Outperform rating, signaling confidence in further upside for the stock. Mizuho Adjusts Price Target on Palo Alto Networks to 265 from 200
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt Securities raised its price target to $275 from $225 and maintained a Buy rating, adding to the bullish outlook from Wall Street. Rosenblatt Securities Adjusts Palo Alto Networks Price Target to 275 from 225
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks noted PANW was advancing even as the broader market declined, suggesting relative strength and continued investor demand for the shares. Palo Alto Networks Advances While Market Declines: Some Information for Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer highlighted why Palo Alto Networks is drawing attention, reinforcing the stock’s momentum but without a clear new fundamental catalyst. Jim Cramer Shares Why Palo Alto Is Having The Last Laugh
• Neutral Sentiment: A Zacks comparison piece said CrowdStrike currently has an edge over PANW based on growth and ARR trends, but it appeared more like sector comparison than a direct negative catalyst for Palo Alto Networks. CRWD vs. PANW Which Cybersecurity Stock Has an Edge Right Now

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the sale, the director directly owned 52,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora purchased 68,085 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $247.55 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $176.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.18. The firm has a market cap of $202.00 billion, a PE ratio of 136.77, a PEG ratio of 8.75 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.57 and a 1-year high of $248.85.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PANW. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.59.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.