O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Buys 2,748 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 12.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,490 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,748 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $7,243,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cedar Brook Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth $215,000. Mutual Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 3,736 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $1,102,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth $211,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter worth $472,000. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 25.2% during the fourth quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 30,873 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $9,104,000 after buying an additional 6,209 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total value of $497,517.32. Following the sale, the president now owns 20,501 shares in the company, valued at $6,292,166.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total transaction of $67,600.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,443,916. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President William D. Jenkins, Jr. sold 1,621 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.92, for a total value of $497,517.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 20,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,292,166.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 428,391 shares of company stock worth $136,147,317 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PANW traded down $11.18 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $324.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,785,568 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,535,446. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $201.17 and a 1 year high of $380.84. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $321.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $311.85. The firm has a market cap of $105.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 20th. The network technology company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.07. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 31.42% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Friday, June 21st. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Friday, June 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $380.00 target price for the company. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $350.00 to $325.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Argus increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $325.59.

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.