Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 2.9% – Should You Sell?

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)’s share price fell 2.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $361.00 and last traded at $365.01. 755,797 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 3,999,166 shares. The stock had previously closed at $376.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. 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 research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $400.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $370.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Westpark Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Eleven 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 to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $376.82.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $350.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $324.94. The company has a market capitalization of $117.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.15, a P/E/G ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.77, for a total value of $11,439,720.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,187,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,373,165.59. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.41, for a total value of $64,682.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,782 shares in the company, valued at $8,014,746.62. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $317.77, for a total transaction of $11,439,720.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,187,567 shares in the company, valued at $377,373,165.59. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 351,452 shares of company stock worth $118,643,279. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth about $25,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 48.4% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 95 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1,111.1% in the 1st quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 109 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 833.3% during the first quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 112 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

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.