Gunderson Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Gunderson Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,326 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 294 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for about 3.4% of Gunderson Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Gunderson Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $5,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American National Bank raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 600.0% during the 1st quarter. American National Bank now owns 126 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2,950.0% during the 4th quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 183 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 205.3% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 63,353 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 42,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.69% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ PANW traded down $5.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $240.20. 3,573,949 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,970,955. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $132.22 and a 1-year high of $258.88. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $216.96. The company has a market cap of $74.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 190.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.19.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 6.38% and a return on equity of 51.13%. The business’s revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PANW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Credit Suisse Group increased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 24th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Friday, August 4th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $290.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $302.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.71.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 2,040 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.01, for a total value of $499,820.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 37,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,151,613.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Aparna Bawa sold 721 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $236.75, for a total transaction of $170,696.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,244 shares in the company, valued at $768,017. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 2,040 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.01, for a total transaction of $499,820.40. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 37,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,151,613.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 168,140 shares of company stock valued at $40,276,328. Corporate insiders own 3.90% 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.