Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Position Raised by KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC

KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 34.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,983 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,039 shares during the period. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $2,268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,569,859 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $8,129,800,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058,127 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,563,020,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.6% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,430,299 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $804,199,000 after acquiring an additional 86,995 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,136,547 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $924,905,000 after acquiring an additional 30,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 83.1% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,616,803 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $771,643,000 after acquiring an additional 1,187,915 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $405.00 to $385.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $365.00 to $360.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $324.17.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 322 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total value of $99,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,167,770. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director John P. Key sold 2,163 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.41, for a total value of $660,601.83. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,639 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,860,076.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 322 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.00, for a total transaction of $99,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,167,770. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 258,182 shares of company stock worth $74,850,597. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ:PANW traded up $8.32 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $319.36. The stock had a trading volume of 2,829,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,863,564. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.17 and a 1-year high of $380.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $301.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.46, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 1.10.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 31.42% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.