Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Buys 28,536 Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Ferguson Wellman Capital Management increased its Palo Alto Networks stake by 14.4%, buying 28,536 shares to reach 226,065 shares valued at approximately $77.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.82% of PANW.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.42, though ratings range from Guggenheim’s “Reduce” to multiple upgraded Buy or Outperform calls.
• Palo Alto Networks recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, but its valuation is demanding: the stock traded near $371.59 with a P/E ratio above 300. Meanwhile, insiders sold roughly $11.1 million of shares over the past 90 days, creating a potential sentiment headwind.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 226,065 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,536 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $77,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 15.0% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 410,401 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $65,796,000 after buying an additional 53,485 shares during the period. Aviva PLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 568,804 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $104,774,000 after acquiring an additional 29,230 shares in the last quarter. B&D White Capital Company LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 1st quarter worth approximately $353,000. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,159,000. Finally, Granite Islands Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 43.6% in the 1st quarter. Granite Islands Private Wealth LLC now owns 15,342 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,453,000 after purchasing an additional 4,659 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total transaction of $242,795.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,045,721.30. This represents a 10.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.90, for a total transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,835 shares of company stock worth $11,127,854. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citizens Jmp lifted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $320.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $330.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Guggenheim cut Palo Alto Networks from a "neutral" rating to a "reduce" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $400.00 target price (up from $350.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $368.42.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $371.59 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $302.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 304.58, a P/E/G ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business's 50-day moving average price is $344.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $248.45. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.57 and a 52-week high of $398.88.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 10.53% and a net margin of 7.95%.The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. 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 expect that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

Here are the key news stories impacting Palo Alto Networks this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark raised its price target to $400 from $340 and maintained a Buy rating, citing potential upside to next-generation security annual recurring revenue, revenue, operating income and margins. The forecast reinforces expectations that Palo Alto Networks’ AI-security strategy is gaining traction. Palo Alto Networks Gets a $400 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are taking confidence from CrowdStrike’s stronger-than-expected results, which highlighted robust AI-related cybersecurity demand and lifted sentiment across the sector. Palo Alto Networks is viewed as a potential beneficiary of the same spending cycle. Palo Alto Networks Stock Trades Up
• Positive Sentiment: Platformization, adoption of AI-security products and recent deal wins are expected to support fourth-quarter growth. BTIG also assigned PANW a Buy rating, adding to broadly favorable analyst coverage. Palo Alto Networks to Report Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings are the next major catalyst. Traders expect potentially significant movement after the report, while analysts are watching recurring revenue, margins, operating income and guidance—not just revenue and EPS. Expected Post-Earnings Stock Move
• Negative Sentiment: Acquisition-related costs could pressure results, and the stock’s triple-digit P/E ratio—above 300 based on the supplied data—means much of the AI-growth outlook may already be reflected in the price. Any shortfall in growth or guidance could trigger profit-taking. Palo Alto’s Rally Has One Big Problem Ahead of Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Accounting Officer Josh D. Paul sold 900 shares for approximately $318,000, reducing his position by 1.21%. The transaction is small relative to his remaining holdings but may create a modest sentiment headwind. Palo Alto Networks Insider Sale

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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This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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