AMI Asset Management Corp Acquires 3,974 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

AMI Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 2.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 150,434 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,974 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks makes up approximately 2.2% of AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $42,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter worth $1,563,020,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 29,086.9% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,057,968 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $606,854,000 after buying an additional 2,050,917 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 83.1% during the 4th 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 during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,569,859 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $8,129,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Axiom Investors LLC DE grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 359.3% in the fourth quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 957,699 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $282,406,000 after acquiring an additional 749,199 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW traded up $0.76 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $341.20. 1,022,648 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,980,896. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $310.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $307.86. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $201.17 and a 12-month high of $380.84. The company has a market cap of $110.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Redburn Atlantic upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $335.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $360.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total transaction of $497,517.32. Following the transaction, the president now owns 20,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,292,166.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $339.12, for a total value of $500,202.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 19,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,452,097.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total transaction of $497,517.32. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 20,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,292,166.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 362,525 shares of company stock worth $110,064,607 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

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.