As of Thursday close, Palo Alto Networks Inc.’s (NASDAQ:PANW) stock was down -$6.4, moving down -2.99 percent to $207.57. The average number of shares traded per day over the past five days has been 3,824,640 shares. 2 times new highs have been achieved over the past 5 days, with a -$6.49 fall in that time frame. In the last twenty days, the average volume was 4,753,290, while in the previous 50 days, it was 6,114,576.
Since last month, PANW stock retreated -15.62%. Shares of the company fell to $206.89 on 08/17/23, the lowest level in the past month. A 52-week high of $258.88 was reached on 07/05/23 after having rallying from a 52-week low of $132.22. Since the beginning of this year, PANW’s stock price has risen by 48.75% or $68.03, and marked a new high 40 times. However, the stock has declined by -19.82% since its 52-week high.
PANW stock investors should be aware that Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW) stock had its last reported insider trading activity 11 days ago on Aug 07. Klarich Lee, the EVP, Chief Product Officer of the company, disposed of 45,000 shares for $215.17 on Aug 07. It resulted in a $9,682,621 divestment by the insider. ZUK NIR sold 36,000 shares at an average price of $251.85 on Aug 01. The insider now owns 1,594,898 shares following the transaction. On Aug 01, Chief Accounting Officer Paul Josh D. sold 250 shares at $249.89 apiece. The transaction was valued at $62,472.
Valuation Metrics
Right now, Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW) has a P/E ratio of about 325.86. The stock’s beta is 1.22. Besides these, the trailing price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 9.61, the price-to-book (PB) ratio of 51.13, and the price-to-cash flow ratio of 22.77 may also be considered.
Financial Health
In the three months ended April 29, Palo Alto Networks Inc.’s quick ratio stood at 0.70, while its current ratio was 0.70, showing that the company is not able to pay off its debt. On the profitability front, the trailing twelve-month gross margin is 70.80% percent. In the year ended April 29, EBITDA margin amounted to 2.69%, whereas operating margins totaled 2.30%. Based on annual data, PANW earned $3.78 billion in gross profit and brought in $5.5 billion in revenue.
A company’s management is another factor that investors consider when determining the profitability of an investment. In the past year, return on investment (ROI) was -6.40%. Return on equity (ROE) for the past 12 months was 32.10%.
According to the earnings report, the company had a higher net income in the recent quarter than it did in the previous quarter. PANW’s revenue rose 19.42% to $1.66 billion during the quarter, while net income inched up to $1.72 billion. While analysts expected Palo Alto Networks Inc. to report $0.93 quarterly earnings, the actual figure was $1.1 per share, beating the consensus estimate by 18.30%. During the quarter, the company generated $246.2 million in EBITDA. The liabilities of Palo Alto Networks Inc. were 12.94 billion at the end of its most recent quarter ended April 29, and its total debt was $3.95 billion. The value of shareholders’ equity is $305.86 million.
Technical Picture
This quick technical analysis looks at Palo Alto Networks Inc.’s (PANW) price momentum. With a historical volatility rate of 22.98%, the RSI 9-day stood at 25.25% on 17 August.
With respect to its five-day moving average, the current Palo Alto Networks Inc. price is down by -3.03% percent or -$6.49. At present, PANW shares trade -14.24% below its 20-day simple moving average and +8.36% percent above its 100-day simple moving average. However, the stock is currently trading approximately -7.63% below its SMA50 and +21.33% above its SMA200.
Stochastic coefficient K was 10.33% and Stochastic coefficient D was 16.44%, while ATR was 6.94. Given the Stochastic reading of 1.44% for the 14-day period, the RSI (14) reading has been calculated as 30.85%. As of today, the MACD Oscillator reading stands at -1.91, while the 14-day reading stands at -10.73.
Analyst Ratings
Wolfe Research reiterated its an Outperform rating on Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: PANW) in a note to investors. The analysts firm has however raised their price target to $225, representing a possible 1.16% increase in the stock price. Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW) has been rated Buy by analysts. According to 0 brokerage firms, PANW is a sell, and 4 firms recommend it is a Hold. There are 0 analysts who say the stock is underweight. A total of 5 analysts rate Palo Alto Networks Inc. stock as buy, with 33 recommending it as overweight.
With a median target price of $252.50, the current consensus forecast for the stock is $220.00 – $305.00. Based on these forecasts, analysts predict Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW) will achieve an average price target of $257.08.
