Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) had its price target raised by UBS Group from $190.00 to $200.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the network technology company's stock.

PANW has been the subject of several other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $165.00 to $192.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $208.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. BTIG Research downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $212.50 to $217.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.40.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW traded down $1.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $200.03. 13,981,536 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,443,483. Palo Alto Networks has a 1-year low of $130.04 and a 1-year high of $207.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.26 billion, a PE ratio of 52.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $186.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.99.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 336,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.70, for a total value of $65,081,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,643,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $705,730,831.62. This represents a 8.44 % 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 235,492 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.32, for a total value of $43,170,393.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,086,404 shares in the company, 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 quarter, insiders have sold 1,458,864 shares of company stock worth $269,397,331. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 92.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,951,283 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,082,895,000 after purchasing an additional 2,862,718 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 97.4% during the fourth quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 105,260 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $19,160,000 after purchasing an additional 51,949 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 404.8% during the fourth quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 6,648 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $1,210,000 after purchasing an additional 5,331 shares during the period. Whelan Financial bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth approximately $212,000. Finally, Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 121.5% during the fourth quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 2,182 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

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.