Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Sold by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 0.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 162,457 shares of the network technology company’s stock after selling 153 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks comprises approximately 1.1% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $55,528,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth about $1,156,000. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 231,566 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $79,149,000 after acquiring an additional 32,626 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 196,700 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $67,232,000 after acquiring an additional 7,291 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter worth about $24,414,000. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.5% in the second quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 2,695 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $914,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW traded down $4.07 on Thursday, reaching $398.29. 182,429 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,847,199. The business’s 50-day moving average is $357.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $335.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.50, a PEG ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.12. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $234.15 and a fifty-two week high of $408.53.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 26.83% and a net margin of 32.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.80 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PANW. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $410.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $410.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $390.00 to $421.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $378.87.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.98, for a total transaction of $20,698,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,854,924.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.49, for a total transaction of $3,484,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 31,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,983,359.33. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 60,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.98, for a total transaction of $20,698,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 159,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,854,924.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 255,252 shares of company stock worth $89,383,077 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.