Ithaka Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Ithaka Group LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 35,020 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks accounts for 2.2% of Ithaka Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Ithaka Group LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $11,872,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% in the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $334.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Argus raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $364.00 to $399.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $366.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,475 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the president now owns 19,026 shares in the company, valued at $6,452,097.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Palo Alto Networks news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.12, for a total transaction of $500,202.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 19,026 shares in the company, valued at $6,452,097.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total value of $67,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,443,916. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 464,075 shares of company stock worth $154,029,567. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW opened at $346.90 on Monday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $224.64 and a fifty-two week high of $380.84. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $336.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $312.13. The company has a market cap of $112.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.42, a PEG ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 32.11%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Palo Alto Networks Company 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.