Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Purchased by Swedbank AB

Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 19.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 786,574 shares of the network technology company's stock after buying an additional 129,371 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.24% of Palo Alto Networks worth $268,851,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PANW. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,570 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,246,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.9% during the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 55,282 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $18,895,000 after acquiring an additional 1,533 shares during the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at about $88,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 251 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 58.9% in the 3rd quarter. Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,351 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock traded up $0.53 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $374.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,728,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,066,460. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $233.81 and a fifty-two week high of $380.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.24 billion, a PE ratio of 54.06, a P/E/G ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 1.13. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $343.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $320.63.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $340.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $375.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $350.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $372.28.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of Palo Alto Networks 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 directly owns 24,782 shares in the company, valued at $8,014,746.62. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,014,746.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.99, for a total value of $30,022,832.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 618,715 shares in the company, valued at $227,680,932.85. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 351,452 shares of company stock valued at $118,643,279 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.30% 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.