Empower Advisory Group LLC Buys 54,609 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 2,525.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,771 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 54,609 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $10,330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% in the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in 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 during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 246.3% in the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management lifted its holdings 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 265.0% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW traded down $7.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $191.45. 3,137,836 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,305,220. The stock has a market capitalization of $126.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 107.93, a P/E/G ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50-day moving average price is $187.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $182.95. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $132.50 and a 12 month high of $208.39.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 21.93% and a net margin of 14.64%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 336,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,643,516 shares in the company, valued at $705,730,831.62. The trade was a 8.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,458,864 shares of company stock worth $269,397,331 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $212.50 to $217.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $193.50 to $224.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.70.

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.