Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives $363.49 Average Target Price from Analysts

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-two research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $364.08.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $350.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $350.00 to $325.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total value of $3,484,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,517 shares in the company, valued at $10,983,359.33. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.16, for a total value of $12,209,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,223,567 shares in the company, valued at $414,984,983.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total value of $3,484,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,983,359.33. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 376,372 shares of company stock worth $121,925,593. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $258,000. KPP Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $221,000. New Century Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $292,000. Founders Financial Alliance LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $219,000. Finally, Ariadne Wealth Management LP bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $515,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 2.2 %

PANW stock opened at $358.21 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks has a 52-week low of $224.64 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $332.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $310.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 32.74% and a net margin of 31.42%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.