Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Sold by Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors cut its Palo Alto Networks stake by 84.4% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 3,289 shares worth about $606,000.
• Insider trading was mixed: Director James J. Goetz sold shares, while CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares in a nearly $10 million purchase, boosting his position significantly.
• Wall Street sentiment remains bullish, with several firms raising price targets, including Wells Fargo to $285 and Cantor Fitzgerald also at $285; analysts now have a Moderate Buy consensus on PANW.

Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 84.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,289 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 17,848 shares during the period. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $606,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Steph & Co. boosted its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Palo Alto Networks by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 149 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, WHI TRUST Co LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total value of $3,729,476.44. Following the sale, the director owned 52,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,631,525. This represents a 30.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at $50,434,276.78. The trade was a 24.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on PANW. Capital One Financial raised their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $168.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group set a $183.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $235.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $226.33.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $285 from $235 and kept an overweight rating, reinforcing a bullish outlook on the stock. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus also lifted its target to $275 and reiterated a buy rating, while BMO and Morgan Stanley recently boosted their targets as well, signaling broader Wall Street confidence in PANW’s growth outlook. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: At Jefferies’ attended Ignite On Tour event, customers showed strong interest in Palo Alto’s AI security products, including Prisma AIRS, XSIAM, Portkey, and Koi Security, suggesting the company’s AI strategy is gaining traction. Proactive Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary also highlighted rising demand for AI security as a potential long-term growth driver, which could support continued multiple expansion if adoption accelerates. Zacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Josh Brown added Palo Alto Networks to his “best stocks in the market” list, which adds to the positive sentiment around cybersecurity names, though it is more of a watchlist/endorsement signal than a direct business catalyst. Invezz

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 2.5%

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $252.92 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $206.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 139.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.89 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $181.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.57 and a twelve month high of $253.10.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion for 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%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

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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