Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume Following Earnings Beat

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. Approximately 2,028,035 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 47% from the previous session’s volume of 3,835,690 shares.The stock last traded at $396.08 and had previously closed at $392.89.

The network technology company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.08. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.11% and a return on equity of 26.83%. The company had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on PANW shares. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $395.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $421.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $403.59.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total value of $3,484,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,517 shares in the company, valued at $10,983,359.33. This trade represents a 24.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 81,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $227,680,932.85. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 254,252 shares of company stock valued at $89,041,637. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,656,968 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $2,609,486,000 after purchasing an additional 220,900 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 34,318.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,259,063 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,113,948,000 after acquiring an additional 3,249,594 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Palo Alto Networks by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,243,457 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,099,564,000 after purchasing an additional 255,060 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 50.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,147,215 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,075,718,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050,173 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,233,918 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $757,321,000 after purchasing an additional 114,742 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $127.22 billion, a PE ratio of 55.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $362.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $338.41.

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.