Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Price Target Raised to $225.00 at Jefferies Financial Group

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its price objective boosted by Jefferies Financial Group from $215.00 to $225.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the network technology company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Roth Capital began coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $210.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $217.50 to $230.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Westpark Capital restated a “hold” rating and set a $196.40 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $203.46.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $192.98 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $142.01 and a one year high of $208.39. The business has a fifty day moving average of $177.37 and a 200 day moving average of $185.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.72, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.02.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The network technology company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion for 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%. Analysts expect that Palo Alto Networks will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,774 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.27, for a total value of $22,858,894.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 293,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,458,002.70. This trade represents a 29.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.41, for a total transaction of $16,541,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,543,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $586,132,981.56. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 568,962 shares of company stock worth $96,933,690. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in Palo Alto Networks by 97.2% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 140 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 141 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 246.3% during the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 142 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 265.0% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.