Brick & Kyle Associates Buys 6,266 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Brick & Kyle Associates grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW) by 29.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 27,301 shares of the network technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,266 shares during the period. Palo Alto Networks makes up approximately 2.1% of Brick & Kyle Associates’ portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Brick & Kyle Associates’ holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $5,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ceeto Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,222,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 3rd quarter worth $1,222,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its position in Palo Alto Networks by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 2,171 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 11,537 shares of the network technology company’s stock worth $2,349,000 after purchasing an additional 3,520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Street Group Inc. acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,423,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

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

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of PANW opened at $167.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $136.28 billion, a PE ratio of 92.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.78. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $223.61. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $169.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $189.50.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. Palo Alto Networks’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PANW. Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $265.00 target price (up from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Monday, January 5th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, New Street Research cut their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report 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 issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $210.19.

Palo Alto Networks Company Profile

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.