Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Stock Position Lowered by L & S Advisors Inc

Key Points

• L & S Advisors Inc cut its Palo Alto Networks stake by 50.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 32,999 shares and ending with 32,448 shares worth about $5.98 million.
• Palo Alto Networks reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.03 versus $0.94 expected and revenue of $2.59 billion, up 14.9% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly bullish, with multiple firms raising price targets, including Wells Fargo to $235 and Robert W. Baird to $265, while the consensus rating is still Moderate Buy.

L & S Advisors Inc lessened its position in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 50.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,448 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 32,999 shares during the quarter. L & S Advisors Inc's holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $5,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Capital Management LLC now owns 1,520 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, South Plains Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. now owns 4,823 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $982,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:PANW opened at $242.83 on Friday. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.57 and a 1 year high of $245.80. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $174.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $198.15 billion, a PE ratio of 134.16, a PEG ratio of 8.75 and a beta of 0.77.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The network technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.81 EPS. Palo Alto Networks's revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $220.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Susquehanna cut 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 report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $214.98.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer raised its price target on Palo Alto Networks to $275 from $245 and reiterated an Outperform rating, signaling confidence that the stock can keep moving higher. Oppenheimer Hikes Palo Alto Networks Price Target to $275: CyberArk Becomes Idira, Identity Security Just Got Real
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada lifted its target to $255 from $220 and kept an Outperform rating, while Robert W. Baird also boosted its target to $265, reinforcing the bullish analyst tone around PANW. RBC raises price target on Palo Alto Networks to 255 from 220, keeps outperform rating
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies raised its price target to $265 from $215 and highlighted Palo Alto’s identity-security push after CyberArk’s IMPACT26 conference, arguing that AI-driven threats are forcing more enterprise spending on automated security tools. Jefferies Hikes Palo Alto Networks Price Target to 265: AI Is Compressing Attack Timelines
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies and other commentary point to Palo Alto’s new “Idira” platform, which could broaden the company’s identity-security offering and create a new growth engine beyond its core cybersecurity business. Palo Alto advances AI-driven identity strategy with Idira launch, shares gain
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks noted that PANW is drawing unusual investor attention, but the piece was mainly a watchlist-style overview rather than a fresh catalyst. Is Most-Watched Stock Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (PANW) Worth Betting on Now?

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Nikesh Arora bought 68,085 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $146.87 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,643.95. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 343,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,434,276.78. This represents a 24.73% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John P. Key sold 1,572 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.32, for a total transaction of $272,459.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,466,400. The trade was a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 30,356 shares of company stock worth $4,981,575 in the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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