Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Stake Raised by Whitener Capital Management Inc.

Whitener Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 2.0% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 11,688 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $1,994,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Uniting Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth about $548,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 106.4% during the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 2,378 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 94.3% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 11,661 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $2,122,000 after purchasing an additional 5,658 shares in the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 108.1% during the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 21,354 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $3,886,000 after purchasing an additional 11,095 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,125 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $2,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,374 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW opened at $187.39 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.01 and a 1-year high of $208.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.95 billion, a PE ratio of 107.08, a PEG ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 0.97. The business’s 50 day moving average is $195.04 and its 200-day moving average is $185.75.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 13.95%. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $225.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. HSBC raised Palo Alto Networks from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $156.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $208.00.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total transaction of $1,009,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 101,135 shares in the company, valued at $20,414,099.75. This trade represents a 4.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.86, for a total value of $24,258,665.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 235,482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,298,914.52. This trade represents a 33.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 569,248 shares of company stock worth $111,279,829 in the last three months. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Profile

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.