BNP Paribas Initiates Coverage on Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW)

Equities researchers at BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm set an "outperform" rating and a $410.00 price target on the network technology company's stock. BNP Paribas' price objective would suggest a potential upside of 15.45% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on PANW. Barclays boosted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $334.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $416.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $370.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $371.50.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW traded up $17.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $355.13. The stock had a trading volume of 3,253,013 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,108,016. Palo Alto Networks has a 52-week low of $233.81 and a 52-week high of $380.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $338.26 and a 200 day moving average of $317.74. The stock has a market cap of $114.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.82 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) 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 net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.41, for a total value of $64,682.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 24,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,746.62. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,187,567 shares in the company, valued at $377,373,165.59. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.41, for a total transaction of $64,682.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,746.62. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 269,866 shares of company stock worth $88,620,447 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 89.3% in the 1st quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 106 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1,111.1% in the first quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 109 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC increased 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 during the period. 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.