3,450 Shares in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Bought by Apella Capital LLC

Key Points

• Apella Capital LLC opened a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the first quarter, buying 3,450 shares worth about $579,000.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on PANW, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.59. Several firms recently raised targets, including Needham, Jefferies, and HSBC.
• Palo Alto Networks reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.85 versus estimates of $0.79 and revenue of $3 billion, up 31.1% year over year. The stock was trading near its 52-week high after rising 3.8%.

Apella Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,450 shares of the network technology company's stock, valued at approximately $579,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. increased its position in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% during the 4th quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Arete Research upgraded Palo Alto Networks from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group set a $300.00 price target on Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $114.00 to $207.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $306.59.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 3.8%

PANW opened at $304.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.57 and a 12 month high of $306.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $247.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 249.34, a P/E/G ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $241.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $196.11.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.Palo Alto Networks's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total value of $5,598,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total transaction of $802,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,103,105. This represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 106,389 shares of company stock worth $27,570,630. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks 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.

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