Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Position Lowered by Hilltop Holdings Inc.

Key Points

• Hilltop Holdings cut its Palo Alto Networks position by 54.1% in the first quarter, selling 5,655 shares and retaining 4,794 shares valued at approximately $769,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 79.82% of PANW.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.48. Recent targets range from $305 to $430.
• Palo Alto Networks reported quarterly revenue of $3 billion, up 31.1% year over year, while adjusted EPS of $0.85 exceeded expectations of $0.79. However, insiders sold 101,239 shares worth approximately $27.2 million over the past three months.

Hilltop Holdings Inc. reduced its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 54.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,794 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 5,655 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $769,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% during the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks 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 transaction of $5,598,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,598,000. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $313,588.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 81,636 shares in the company, valued at $23,272,790.88. This trade represents a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 101,239 shares of company stock valued at $27,174,360. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on PANW shares. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $245.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $331.48.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

NASDAQ PANW opened at $323.79 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $300.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $217.83. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.57 and a 52 week high of $368.80. The stock has a market cap of $263.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 265.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

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, 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 business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. The business's revenue 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. Analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.03 EPS for the current year.

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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