Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Receives $402.03 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the forty-four ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $402.03.

Several research firms have recently commented on PANW. Westpark Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $395.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.99, for a total transaction of $30,022,832.14. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 618,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $227,680,932.85. This trade represents a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 168,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.39, for a total transaction of $65,081,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,821,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at $705,730,831.62. This trade represents a 8.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 412,252 shares of company stock worth $150,638,257 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 177.4% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 86 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2,933.3% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 91 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ PANW traded up $3.45 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $387.82. 1,043,334 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,927,504. The stock has a market cap of $127.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.50, a P/E/G ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 1.12. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $260.09 and a one year high of $408.53. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $369.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $342.92.

Palo Alto Networks shares are scheduled to split on Monday, December 16th. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, November 20th. The newly created shares will be payable to shareholders after the market closes on Friday, December 13th.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.08. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. The business's revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks will post 3.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.