Rep. Nancy Pelosi Purchases Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW)

Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-California) recently bought shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW). In a filing disclosed on January 17th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,000,001 and $5,000,000 in Palo Alto Networks stock on December 20th.

Representative Nancy Pelosi also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $5,000,001 – $25,000,000 in shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) on 12/31/2024.
• Sold $1,000,001 – $5,000,000 in shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on 12/31/2024.
• Purchased $500,001 – $1,000,000 in shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on 12/20/2024.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW traded up $6.79 on Tuesday, hitting $183.90. 3,019,115 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,176,306. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $189.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.72. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $130.04 and a one year high of $207.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.89, a PEG ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.12 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. Research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 336,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.70, for a total value of $65,081,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,643,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $705,730,831.62. This represents a 8.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.70, for a total value of $21,564,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 365,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,744,323.20. This represents a 24.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 867,734 shares of company stock valued at $161,546,523. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $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 buying an additional 32,626 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at $24,414,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 196,700 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $67,232,000 after purchasing an additional 7,291 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 50.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,147,215 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $1,075,718,000 after buying an additional 1,050,173 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PANW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $190.00 price target (down from $207.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $216.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $193.50 to $224.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $212.50 to $217.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $165.00 to $192.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.24.

About Representative Pelosi

Nancy Pelosi (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing California’s 11th Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2023. Her current term ends on January 3, 2025. Pelosi (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent California’s 11th Congressional District. She declared candidacy for the primary scheduled on March 5, 2024. Pelosi is the first and only woman to serve as speaker of the House. Pelosi was first elected to the U.S. House in a special election in 1987 to represent California’s 5th Congressional District, which she represented until her election to California’s 8th Congressional District in 2012. In 2002, she was elected minority leader, becoming the highest-ranking congresswoman of either party in U.S. history. When Democrats took control of the House in 2007, Pelosi made history again with her election as speaker of the House. Pelosi was re-elected speaker of the House in 2019, following the 2018 midterm elections. She served in that role until January 3, 2023. Notable legislation passed during her speakership includes the Affordable Care Act, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act. Pelosi is also a prominent Democratic fundraiser, raising more than $700 million for the Democratic Party since becoming a party leader in 2002. Before holding public office, Pelosi served on the Democratic National Committee and as a chair of the California Democratic Party. Nancy Pelosi was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Pelosi graduated from the Institute of Notre Dame in 1958. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Trinity College in 1962. Pelosi served as the chair of the California State Democratic Party and the finance chairwoman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

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.