Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Given New $320.00 Price Target at Evercore

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) had its price objective lifted by analysts at Evercore from $250.00 to $320.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the network technology company’s stock. Evercore’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 22.80% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on PANW. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $229.16.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $260.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.63 billion, a PE ratio of 143.97, a P/E/G ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $185.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.38. Palo Alto Networks has a fifty-two week low of $139.57 and a fifty-two week high of $261.41.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total transaction of $177,540.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 343,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,076,355. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Palo Alto Networks

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company’s stock.

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.