Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives Hold Rating from Westpark Capital

Westpark Capital restated their hold rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $196.40 price objective on the network technology company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. OTR Global reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $222.50 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $193.50 to $224.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Guggenheim downgraded Palo Alto Networks from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.77.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $196.73 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks has a 1 year low of $130.04 and a 1 year high of $207.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $186.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $181.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.23, a P/E/G ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 13.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.74 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.22, for a total value of $126,854.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 47,976 shares in the company, valued at $8,694,210.72. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 336,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.70, for a total value of $65,081,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,643,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $705,730,831.62. The trade was a 8.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,458,864 shares of company stock valued at $269,397,331 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% in the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 246.3% during the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 97.3% in the fourth quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 265.0% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by 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.