Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Down 4% - Here's Why

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $177.73 and last traded at $177.63. Approximately 1,561,564 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 5,710,409 shares. The stock had previously closed at $184.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $223.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $217.50 to $230.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Loop Capital reduced their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $180.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Westpark Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $196.40 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $205.06.

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Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.0 %

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $187.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.39. The company has a market capitalization of $114.38 billion, a PE ratio of 97.33, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.04.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 99,707 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total value of $18,191,542.15. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 358,197 shares of the company's stock, valued at $65,353,042.65. This represents a 21.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 235,492 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total transaction of $43,170,393.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at $199,159,581.28. This represents a 17.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,122,864 shares of company stock valued at $204,315,811. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Dallas Securities Inc. lifted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.4% in the third quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 2,130 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. RB Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.5% in the third quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 2,492 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $852,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.2% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,977 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $676,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Zega Financial LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 0.8% during the third quarter. Zega Financial LLC now owns 5,997 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,050,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.