Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 181.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,732 shares of the network technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 26,889 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $7,594,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.5% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 106,248 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $36,316,000 after buying an additional 1,619 shares during the period. United Bank raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 6,835 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,336,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $231,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 26.6% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 7,449 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,546,000 after purchasing an additional 1,567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 35.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $886,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 47,976 shares in the company, valued at $8,694,210.72. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 235,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total value of $43,170,393.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at $199,159,581.28. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock worth $204,315,811. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.1 %

PANW traded down $1.88 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $172.56. The company had a trading volume of 3,004,810 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,899,234. The company has a market capitalization of $114.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.32, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.04. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $187.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $185.31. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $132.50 and a 52 week high of $208.39.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on PANW. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $190.00 price target (down previously from $207.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $180.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $205.06.

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.