Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Purchased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 409,443 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,992 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of Palo Alto Networks worth $138,805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PANW. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,572,098 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $8,118,190,000 after buying an additional 1,002,239 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,563,020,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,136,547 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $924,905,000 after purchasing an additional 30,013 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,814,881 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $799,792,000 after buying an additional 198,078 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,746,971 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $515,147,000 after buying an additional 84,151 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, August 19th. Argus increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $336.00 to $348.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $334.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Northland Securities raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $275.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $350.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $363.49.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.00, for a total value of $67,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares in the company, valued at $8,443,916. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 125,866 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total value of $42,165,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 166,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,791,570. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 200 shares of Palo Alto Networks 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,982 shares in the company, valued at $8,443,916. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 376,372 shares of company stock valued at $121,925,593. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of PANW traded up $4.51 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $362.72. 2,986,974 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,373,807. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $332.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $311.19. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $224.64 and a 12-month high of $380.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.14.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The network technology company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 31.42% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Palo Alto Networks

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.