Dillon & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 100.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,703 shares of the network technology company's stock after buying an additional 51,053 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks makes up 2.6% of Dillon & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Dillon & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $18,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Emerald Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 95.9% in the fourth quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 5,206 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $947,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 104.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 61,233,907 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $11,142,122,000 after acquiring an additional 31,281,359 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 103.1% during the fourth quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 5,226 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $951,000 after purchasing an additional 2,653 shares during the last quarter. Napatree Capital LLC lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 105.7% during the fourth quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 1,868 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the period. Finally, Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 130.8% in the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,166 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 2,361 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Palo Alto Networks Price Performance
Shares of PANW stock traded up $5.16 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $189.95. 5,336,425 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,739,160. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $132.50 and a 1 year high of $208.39. The company has a market cap of $125.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.04. The company's 50 day moving average is $187.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $185.38.
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 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 21.93% and a net margin of 14.64%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, February 10th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $212.50 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $180.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Westpark Capital reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $196.40 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $425.00 to $213.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $205.06.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Palo Alto Networks
Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks
In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.22, for a total value of $126,854.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 47,976 shares in the company, valued at $8,694,210.72. This 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 the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 235,492 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total transaction of $43,170,393.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $199,159,581.28. This trade represents a 17.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock valued at $204,315,811. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.
About Palo Alto Networks
(
Free Report)
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.
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