Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 1.2% After Insider Selling

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) dropped 1.2% during trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $367.40 and last traded at $370.00. Approximately 229,086 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 4,047,283 shares. The stock had previously closed at $374.44.

Specifically, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.99, for a total transaction of $30,022,832.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 618,715 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $227,680,932.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on PANW shares. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $395.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Eleven investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $372.28.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.3 %

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $345.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $321.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 1.13.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The firm's revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.80 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First PREMIER Bank increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 48.4% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 95 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 3,200.0% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 89.3% in the first quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 106 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.