Flputnam Investment Management Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Flputnam Investment Management Co. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 170,296 shares of the network technology company’s stock after buying an additional 5,170 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $31,369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total value of $177,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 83,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. This represents a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 30,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,076,355. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. HSBC dropped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $157.00 to $114.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. UBS Group set a $183.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.16.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $256.75 on Wednesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $261.41. The company has a market cap of $209.51 billion, a PE ratio of 141.85, a P/E/G ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.69.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW) is a cybersecurity company founded in 2005 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The firm develops a broad suite of security products and services designed to prevent successful cyberattacks and protect enterprise networks, clouds, and endpoints. Built around a platform strategy, its offerings target threat prevention, detection, response and governance across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

The company’s product portfolio includes next‑generation firewalls as a core on‑premises capability, alongside cloud‑delivered security services and software for securing public and private clouds.