Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Given New $415.00 Price Target at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its price objective raised by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $395.00 to $415.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the network technology company’s stock.

PANW has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $385.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $410.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. OTR Global reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Northland Securities reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective (up previously from $350.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $402.03.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

PANW opened at $383.36 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.82 billion, a PE ratio of 49.92, a P/E/G ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.12. Palo Alto Networks has a one year low of $260.09 and a one year high of $408.53. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $364.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $339.89.

Palo Alto Networks shares are scheduled to split on Monday, December 16th. The 2-1 split was announced on Wednesday, November 20th. The newly issued shares will be distributed to shareholders after the market closes on Friday, December 13th.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The network technology company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.08. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 32.99% and a return on equity of 23.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was 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 trade represents a 24.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 36,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.50, for a total transaction of $11,970,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,115,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,926,027.50. The trade was a 3.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 254,252 shares of company stock worth $89,041,637. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 113.9% in the third quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 77 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 352.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 177.4% in the 3rd quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 86 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.