Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 1.6% – Here’s What Happened

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price was down 1.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $180.12 and last traded at $181.43. Approximately 1,001,689 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 6,108,466 shares. The stock had previously closed at $184.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $193.50 to $224.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $223.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays dropped their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $212.50 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Westpark Capital reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $196.40 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $205.06.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $122.31 billion, a PE ratio of 103.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $186.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 99,707 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total transaction of $18,191,542.15. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 358,197 shares in the company, valued at $65,353,042.65. The trade was a 21.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 235,492 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total value of $43,170,393.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,159,581.28. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock valued at $204,315,811 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 786,574 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $268,851,000 after acquiring an additional 129,371 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.5% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 106,248 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $36,316,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter worth $218,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 5.7% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 90,511 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $32,420,000 after buying an additional 4,857 shares during the period. Finally, BSW Wealth Partners bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $215,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.