3,003 Shares in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Acquired by Ponta Wealth Partners LLC

Ponta Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,003 shares of the network technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $553,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% in the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Painted Porch Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 72.7% during the third quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 152 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the transaction, the director owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at $8,631,525. This represents a 30.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,103,105. The trade was a 3.22% 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 have sold 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ PANW opened at $183.68 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $180.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.48, a P/E/G ratio of 6.63 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $223.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 12.96%.The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PANW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $224.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.64.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.