Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Stake Lifted by Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp

Key Points

• Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its Palo Alto Networks stake by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, ending with 48,458 shares valued at about $8.93 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted positions in PANW, and 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutions, showing heavy professional ownership.
• Analysts remain largely bullish: JPMorgan, Baird, BMO Capital Markets, and Truist all raised price targets, while the stock also got a boost from Palo Alto Networks’ Portkey acquisition and optimism ahead of earnings.

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 48,458 shares of the network technology company's stock after buying an additional 3,926 shares during the quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $8,926,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the third quarter valued at about $75,412,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 134.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 672,129 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $136,859,000 after buying an additional 384,985 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 0.6% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,364,442 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $277,828,000 after buying an additional 8,344 shares in the last quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC boosted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 38.4% during the third quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC now owns 54,401 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $11,077,000 after buying an additional 15,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Palo Alto Networks during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,554,000. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Palo Alto Networks

In related news, Director John P. Key sold 1,572 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.32, for a total value of $272,459.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,466,400. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nikesh Arora acquired 68,085 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, with a total value of $9,999,643.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 93,660 shares of company stock worth $21,346,475. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $300 from $200 and kept an overweight rating, signaling continued optimism about the company’s growth outlook. JPMorgan price target update
• Positive Sentiment: Robert W. Baird also lifted its price target to $300 from $265 and reiterated an outperform rating, reinforcing the view that PANW can sustain momentum into earnings. Baird price target update
• Positive Sentiment: Palo Alto Networks completed its acquisition of Portkey, an AI gateway provider, which should strengthen its Prisma AIRS platform and expand its AI-security offerings. Portkey acquisition article
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple articles note that PANW is approaching its earnings release, with traders expecting a meaningful post-earnings move; that keeps attention on the stock but does not by itself confirm direction. Earnings watch article
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer said the stock “tends to run into the quarter,” reflecting a seasonal trading thesis rather than a new fundamental catalyst. Jim Cramer commentary

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 6.7%

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $300.48 on Tuesday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.57 and a 1-year high of $302.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 166.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $195.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Arete Research raised Palo Alto Networks from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their target price on Palo Alto Networks from $230.00 to $200.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $238.23.

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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