Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Bought by Trust Investment Advisors

Trust Investment Advisors increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 8,100 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 578 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks makes up about 1.9% of Trust Investment Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Trust Investment Advisors’ holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $2,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,511,732 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $6,215,410,000 after purchasing an additional 304,272 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $751,276,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,430,299 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $804,199,000 after purchasing an additional 86,995 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.8% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,376,601 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $673,731,000 after buying an additional 92,760 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 29,086.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,057,968 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $606,854,000 after buying an additional 2,050,917 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 1.4 %

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $3.81 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $281.14. The stock had a trading volume of 3,850,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,596,420. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.84 billion, a PE ratio of 43.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.19. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $176.30 and a 12 month high of $380.84. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $299.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $290.18.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 30.24% and a return on equity of 36.58%. Equities research analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $343.03, for a total value of $15,436,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 198,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,955,958.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total transaction of $294,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,629,160. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.03, for a total transaction of $15,436,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 198,105 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,955,958.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 167,917 shares of company stock valued at $49,395,553 in the last 90 days. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on PANW. Westpark Capital reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, January 29th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $363.00 to $337.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $280.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.82.

Palo Alto Networks 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.