Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Acquired by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 3.6% to own approximately 795,693 shares valued at $135.8 million, making it the 25th largest position in its investment portfolio.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic, with the average price target for Palo Alto Networks set at $218.86, and most firms maintaining a Buy or Overweight rating on the stock.
• Palo Alto Networks reported $2.54 billion in revenue for its latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and achieved an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.95, beating estimates of $0.89.

Candriam S.C.A. grew its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 795,693 shares of the network technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,447 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks makes up 0.9% of Candriam S.C.A.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Candriam S.C.A. owned approximately 0.12% of Palo Alto Networks worth $135,777,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PANW. Csenge Advisory Group raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 2.4% during the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 2,271 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. GSG Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 0.4% in the first quarter. GSG Advisors LLC now owns 12,450 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,154,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 1.4% in the first quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 4,047 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $691,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Crew Capital Management Ltd. grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.5% during the first quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 2,310 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC grew its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 1.9% during the first quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 3,084 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on PANW. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $215.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Tuesday. Roth Capital began coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $223.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Bank of America raised shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $217.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Twenty-eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $218.86.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $181.56 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 113.12, a P/E/G ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.94. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $144.15 and a one year high of $210.39.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 18th. The network technology company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. Q1 2026 guidance at 0.880-0.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.85, for a total transaction of $1,009,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 101,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,414,099.75. This trade represents a 4.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nir Zuk sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were 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. The trade was a 3.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 669,248 shares of company stock worth $126,423,337 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

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.

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