Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Rating) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Loop Capital raised their price target on the stock from $225.00 to $240.00. The stock traded as high as $207.38 and last traded at $203.75, with a volume of 5449566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $189.74.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Capital One Financial assumed coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, May 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $247.00 price objective for the company. Credit Suisse Group lifted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $232.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palo Alto Networks news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.59, for a total transaction of $102,447.45. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,223 shares in the company, valued at $964,113.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.12, for a total transaction of $8,240,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 605,212 shares in the company, valued at $110,826,421.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Aparna Bawa sold 555 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.59, for a total transaction of $102,447.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,223 shares in the company, valued at $964,113.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 268,880 shares of company stock worth $50,764,796 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PANW. RB Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 19.9% during the first quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 602 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $375,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter worth approximately $6,910,000. United Bank increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 11.7% during the first quarter. United Bank now owns 2,822 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,757,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 13.6% during the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential PLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,022,000. 81.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $61.83 billion, a PE ratio of 2,786.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 1.17. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $192.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.45.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 21st. The network technology company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 36.62%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.2 EPS for the current year.

About Palo Alto Networks

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Palo Alto Networks, Inc engages in the provision of network security solutions to enterprises, service providers, and government entities. It operates through the following geographical segments: the United States, Israel, and Other Countries. The company was founded by Nir Zuk in March 2005 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, CA.