Key Points
- Director John Key sold 2,500 Palo Alto Networks shares at an average price of $376.03, generating approximately $940,075. The transaction reduced his holdings by 20% to 10,000 shares.
- Palo Alto Networks reported quarterly EPS of $1.02, beating estimates of $0.98, while revenue rose 34.5% year over year to $3.41 billion.
- Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $387.60, though the stock’s elevated valuation and insider selling may pose risks.
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) Director Aparna Bawa sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $377.18, for a total transaction of $188,590.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,137.66. The trade was a 9.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.
Aparna Bawa also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Monday, September 14th, Aparna Bawa sold 1,000 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.61, for a total transaction of $373,610.00.
- On Wednesday, July 1st, Aparna Bawa sold 290 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.74, for a total transaction of $101,134.60.
- On Monday, June 29th, Aparna Bawa sold 632 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.67, for a total value of $201,399.44.
- On Monday, June 22nd, Aparna Bawa sold 345 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.17, for a total value of $100,108.65.
Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 0.1%
Shares of NASDAQ PANW opened at $375.65 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.57 and a 1 year high of $398.88. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $351.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.73. The firm has a market cap of $307.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 736.58, a PEG ratio of 10.82 and a beta of 0.91.
Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 2.67%.The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks's revenue for the quarter was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2027 guidance at 4.160-4.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PANW shares. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $345.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Arete Research lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $433.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $375.00 price objective (up from $370.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $355.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 target price (up from $335.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Thirty-nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $387.60.
View Our Latest Research Report on Palo Alto Networks
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Palo Alto Networks
A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter valued at $25,833,462,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 22,681,876 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $7,734,973,000 after acquiring an additional 205,123 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,331,705 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $5,587,100,000 after purchasing an additional 594,789 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,778,963 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,993,802,000 after purchasing an additional 706,003 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,989,257 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $2,934,935,000 after purchasing an additional 540,756 shares in the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Palo Alto Networks News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Palo Alto Networks this week:
- Positive Sentiment: AI adoption is increasing demand for cybersecurity platforms as companies seek protection against automated attacks, evolving malware and other AI-related risks. J.P. Morgan identified Palo Alto Networks among the cybersecurity companies positioned to benefit from this trend. AI Is Boosting Cybersecurity. CrowdStrike and 4 More Stocks to Buy.
- Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank raised its fiscal 2027 EPS estimate for PANW to $2.30 from $2.11, matching the current consensus forecast. The upgrade to earnings expectations supports the case for improving fundamentals, although the bank retained a “Hold” rating. Scotiabank earnings estimate report
- Neutral Sentiment: Cybersecurity stocks have attracted investor interest as security spending remains more resilient than broader enterprise software spending. However, much of the sector’s AI-driven growth outlook may already be reflected in valuations, making continued execution important for PANW.
- Negative Sentiment: Directors disclosed several stock sales: Aparna Bawa sold 1,500 shares across September 14–15 for approximately $562,200, while John P. Key sold 2,500 shares for about $940,075. The transactions reduced their respective holdings by roughly 9% to 20%, potentially creating a modest sentiment overhang. Palo Alto Networks insider filings
- Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary highlights a trade-off for PANW: sales are accelerating as agentic AI expands security needs, but margins are contracting. With the stock trading at a very high earnings multiple, weaker profitability or slower growth could increase valuation risk. The Proliferation of Agentic AI Has Been Great News for Palo Alto Stock Investors
Palo Alto Networks Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Palo Alto Networks, Inc is a cybersecurity company that provides security products and services to businesses, governments and other organizations worldwide. The company helps customers protect networks, cloud environments, endpoints, applications and connected devices from cyber threats.
Its portfolio includes next-generation firewalls and network security technologies, as well as cloud-delivered security solutions such as Prisma Access and Prisma Cloud. Palo Alto Networks also offers Cortex products for endpoint protection, security operations, threat detection and response, and automation.
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