Guggenheim Capital LLC Has $56.50 Million Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC reduced its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 18.3%, owning 331,121 shares after selling 74,274 shares in the first quarter, reflecting a decline in its stake.
• Despite the reduction in Guggenheim's holdings, other institutional investors have been actively acquiring or increasing their positions in Palo Alto Networks, with 79.82% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• Wall Street analysts have a generally positive outlook on Palo Alto Networks, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.52 across multiple brokerages.

Guggenheim Capital LLC lessened its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 18.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 331,121 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 74,274 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC owned 0.05% of Palo Alto Networks worth $56,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 62,775,544 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $10,712,019,000 after acquiring an additional 1,541,637 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,277,739 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,324,387,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,631 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 41.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,235,406 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,234,650,000 after acquiring an additional 2,134,735 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 98.0% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 6,158,580 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,120,615,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047,625 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 92.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,951,283 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,082,895,000 after acquiring an additional 2,862,718 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 1.8%

PANW stock traded up $3.41 during trading on Thursday, hitting $191.02. The company had a trading volume of 6,023,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,337,660. The business has a 50-day moving average of $189.57 and a 200-day moving average of $186.21. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $144.15 and a one year high of $210.39. The stock has a market cap of $127.37 billion, a PE ratio of 119.02, a PEG ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 0.94.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.06. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 17.66% and a net margin of 12.30%.The business had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. Q1 2026 guidance at 0.880-0.900 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.80, for a total transaction of $17,280,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,143,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $543,199,564.80. This represents a 3.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.20, for a total value of $128,940.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 37,723 shares in the company, valued at $6,948,576.60. The trade was a 1.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 669,948 shares of company stock valued at $126,552,277. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on PANW shares. KeyCorp downgraded Palo Alto Networks from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Roth Capital started coverage on Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Twenty-eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.52.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc provides cybersecurity solutions worldwide. The company offers firewall appliances and software; and Panorama, a security management solution for the global control of network security platform as a virtual or a physical appliance. It also provides subscription services covering the areas of threat prevention, malware and persistent threat, URL filtering, laptop and mobile device protection, DNS security, Internet of Things security, SaaS security API, and SaaS security inline, as well as threat intelligence, and data loss prevention.