Kovack Advisors Inc. Has $9.31 Million Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Kovack Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 98.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,174 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,348 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks comprises about 0.9% of Kovack Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $9,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2,933.3% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 91 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth $32,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

PANW stock opened at $189.55 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.12. The stock has a market cap of $125.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 106.79, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.14. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $132.50 and a 1 year high of $208.39.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.70, for a total value of $21,564,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 365,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,744,323.20. This represents a 24.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.22, for a total transaction of $126,854.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 47,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,694,210.72. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,122,864 shares of company stock worth $204,315,811 in the last three months. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. OTR Global reiterated a “negative” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $165.00 to $192.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $192.50 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and set a $190.00 price objective (down from $207.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $192.50 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.06.

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.