Encore Global Management LP Makes New Investment in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Encore Global Management LP initiated a 15,000-share Palo Alto Networks position worth approximately $5.1 million in the second quarter, making PANW its second-largest holding at about 5% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 79.82% of the stock.
• Palo Alto Networks reported quarterly EPS of $0.85, beating estimates by $0.06, while revenue reached $3 billion and rose 31.1% year over year. The company issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $3.77–$3.79.
• PANW shares were trading at $358.04, up 2.4%, with analysts maintaining a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $362.67. Recent insider transactions were predominantly sales, totaling 37,935 shares valued at $10.8 million in the last quarter.

Encore Global Management LP purchased a new position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 15,000 shares of the network technology company's stock, valued at approximately $5,115,000. Palo Alto Networks makes up about 5.0% of Encore Global Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC lifted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% in the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.08, for a total value of $313,588.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 81,636 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,272,790.88. The trade was a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 37,935 shares of company stock valued at $10,809,461. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of PANW stock opened at $358.04 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $291.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 293.48, a P/E/G ratio of 11.74 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $398.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $337.38 and a 200-day moving average of $241.72.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.94 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The business's revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $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 research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $390.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Northland Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Capital One Financial set a $421.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "neutral" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $362.67.

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.

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