Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Sold by Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management trimmed its Palo Alto Networks stake by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,721 shares and ending with 215,477 shares valued at about $39.8 million.
• Insider activity was mixed: CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares worth nearly $10 million, while CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares. Insiders have sold a net 30,356 shares over the last 90 days.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on PANW, with multiple firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating and average target of $217.59. The company also recently beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.03 EPS on $2.59 billion in revenue.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 215,477 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 4,721 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $39,793,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PANW. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 147.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,761 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,230,000 after purchasing an additional 4,031 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 169.1% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 5,212 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,275 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 66.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,484 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares during the period. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 11,100.0% in the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 560 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 6.0% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,398 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Josh D. Paul sold 1,100 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.40, for a total value of $177,540.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 83,136 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,418,150.40. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock valued at $4,981,575 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. DA Davidson set a $190.00 price objective on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $224.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $275.00 price target (up from $245.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 price target (up from $205.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Argus raised Palo Alto Networks to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Palo Alto Networks presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $217.59.

Palo Alto Networks Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PANW opened at $247.55 on Tuesday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $176.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $181.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.00 billion, a PE ratio of 136.77, a P/E/G ratio of 8.75 and a beta of 0.77. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.57 and a 1 year high of $248.85.

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

Palo Alto Networks News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt Securities raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks from $225 to $275 and kept a buy rating, signaling stronger confidence in the company’s outlook. Rosenblatt Securities Issues Positive Forecast for Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW Stock Price
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho increased its price target from $200 to $265 and maintained an outperform rating, adding to the bullish view from analysts on PANW’s earnings and growth prospects. Palo Alto Networks NASDAQ: PANW Price Target Raised to $265.00 at Mizuho
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Jim Cramer highlighted Palo Alto Networks as “having the last laugh,” reinforcing investor optimism around the stock’s resilience and market leadership. Jim Cramer Shares Why Palo Alto (PANW) Is Having The Last Laugh
• Neutral Sentiment: One market recap noted PANW advanced while the broader market declined, but the report was mainly descriptive and did not add new fundamental information. Palo Alto Networks (PANW) Advances While Market Declines: Some Information for Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: A comparison piece said CrowdStrike currently has an edge over Palo Alto Networks on growth momentum and ARR trends, but this was more of an industry comparison than a direct negative catalyst. CRWD vs. PANW: Which Cybersecurity Stock Has an Edge Right Now?

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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