Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Price Target Raised to $240.00 at Evercore ISI

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Rating) had its target price upped by Evercore ISI from $215.00 to $240.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning, The Fly reports. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the network technology company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a hold rating on the stock. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $170.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $210.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $232.19.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $204.31 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $192.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $176.45. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $132.22 and a one year high of $207.38. The firm has a market cap 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.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 21st. The network technology company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.22. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 36.62% and a net margin of 0.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.60, for a total transaction of $51,315.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 30,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,774,150.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 275 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.60, for a total transaction of $51,315.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 30,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,774,150.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora sold 13,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.42, for a total value of $2,779,596.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,177,193 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $237,110,214.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 268,880 shares of company stock valued at $50,764,796. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 186.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 33,658 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $5,520,000 after buying an additional 21,890 shares during the last quarter. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Ropes Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,674 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 285.4% in the 3rd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 52,833 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $8,654,000 after buying an additional 39,124 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 204.4% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,094 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $343,000 after buying an additional 1,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 9,506 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,327,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.82% of the company’s stock.

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.