Lee Klarich Sells 120,000 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.70, for a total value of $21,564,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 365,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,744,323.20. The trade was a 24.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW opened at $172.83 on Thursday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.04 and a 52-week high of $207.24. The company has a market capitalization of $113.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $178.27.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 23.36% and a net margin of 32.99%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $222.50 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $192.50 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Rosenblatt Securities raised Palo Alto Networks from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $188.00 to $212.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PANW. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 177.4% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2,933.3% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 91 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.