Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Sold by Crestwood Advisors Group LLC

Key Points

• Crestwood Advisors Group LLC reduced its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 13% in Q4, selling 10,187 shares and retaining 67,940 shares valued at $12.515 million.
• Company insiders have been net sellers, disposing of 30,356 shares worth $4.98 million over the past three months — including EVP Dipak Golechha and director James J. Goetz — leaving insiders with 1.40% ownership.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but tilted positive: BTIG and Truist raised price targets to $216 and $220 while others cut theirs (HSBC to $114), and the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $211.64.

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC decreased its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 13.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,940 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 10,187 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $12,515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of PANW. Klingman & Associates LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 2,131 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $434,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. PTM Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. PTM Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 39.7% during the 3rd quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 176 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. now owns 1,056 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: BTIG raised its price target to $216 from $200 and reiterated a Buy, citing constructive channel checks with partners and customers — a catalyst for investor confidence in demand and growth. BTIG Just Got Bullish on Palo Alto Networks: Price Target Climbs to $216 on Improving Channel Checks
• Positive Sentiment: Truist reaffirmed a Buy and raised its price target to $220 (from $205), signaling analyst confidence that upside remains vs. current levels and supporting short‑term buying interest. Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW Given Buy Rating at Truist Financial
• Negative Sentiment: A Zacks analysis warns PANW trades at a premium valuation and notes acquisition costs, EPS pressure and increasing competition could weigh on near‑term results — a reminder that fundamentals and high multiples still pose downside risk. Palo Alto Networks Trades at Premium Valuation: How to Play the Stock

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $196.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $160.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.58, a PEG ratio of 6.62 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $223.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $166.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.61.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.58 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. Palo Alto Networks's quarterly revenue was up 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $157.00 to $114.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Daiwa Securities Group decreased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $212.00 to $175.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Arete Research upgraded shares of Palo Alto Networks from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $802,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 150,250 shares in the company, valued at $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 52,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,631,525. This represents a 30.17% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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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