Mariner LLC Increases Holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Mariner LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 674,525 shares of the network technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,975 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC’s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $137,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. 79.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of PANW opened at $167.45 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $169.55 and its 200 day moving average is $189.35. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $223.61. The company has a market capitalization of $136.64 billion, a PE ratio of 92.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.78.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,768 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.03, for a total transaction of $23,070,311.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 298,887 shares in the company, valued at $57,096,383.61. This trade represents a 28.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total value of $940,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 155,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,190,293.42. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 149,252 shares of company stock valued at $27,888,535. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PANW. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird set a $220.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold 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 $210.19.

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.