Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Key Points

• Swiss National Bank trimmed its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 4.1%, selling 82,100 shares and now holding 1,922,100 shares (about 0.28% of the company) valued at roughly $391.4 million.
• Palo Alto Networks beat expectations for the quarter with $1.03 EPS (vs. $0.94 expected) and $2.59B revenue (vs. $2.58B expected), revenue was up 14.9% year‑over‑year and the company guided FY2026 EPS to $3.650–3.700.
• Significant insider selling occurred recently—insiders sold 126,568 shares worth about $24.16 million in the last three months, including EVP Lee Klarich’s sale of 120,768 shares for $23.07 million, leaving insiders with 1.40% ownership.

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,922,100 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 82,100 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.28% of Palo Alto Networks worth $391,378,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,269,963 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $13,290,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253,589 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Palo Alto Networks by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,174,029 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $3,093,262,000 after purchasing an additional 169,055 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 11.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,906,963 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $1,202,776,000 after purchasing an additional 611,375 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 1.2% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,476,638 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $916,099,000 after purchasing an additional 54,601 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the second quarter worth $675,865,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Lee Klarich sold 120,768 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.03, for a total value of $23,070,311.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 298,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,096,383.61. This trade represents a 28.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.18, for a total transaction of $940,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 155,119 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,190,293.42. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 126,568 shares of company stock worth $24,159,059. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on PANW shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Palo Alto Networks from $240.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $265.00 target price (up from $230.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Truist Financial set a $200.00 target price on Palo Alto Networks and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Westpark Capital reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $210.19.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Shares of Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $165.05 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $190.19. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a one year low of $139.57 and a one year high of $223.61. The company has a market cap of $134.68 billion, a PE ratio of 91.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 0.78.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 17.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.650-3.700 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.800 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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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