Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Stock Price Down 3.6% – Here’s What Happened

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) shares fell 3.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $194.83 and last traded at $197.73. 1,985,372 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 6,283,225 shares. The stock had previously closed at $205.19.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PANW shares. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $455.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $223.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Susquehanna upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $217.50 to $230.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $192.50 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $204.69.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $187.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $183.25. The stock has a market cap of $126.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.62, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 14.64% and a return on equity of 21.93%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 490,723 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total transaction of $89,532,411.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,086,404 shares in the company, valued at $198,214,409.80. This trade represents a 31.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 99,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.45, for a total transaction of $18,191,542.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 358,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,353,042.65. The trade was a 21.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,458,864 shares of company stock valued at $269,397,331. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the third quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its position 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 worth $29,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2,933.3% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 91 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. 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.