Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW Stock: Russell Investments Group Ltd. Cuts Holdings

Key Points

• Russell Investments cut its Palo Alto Networks stake by 36.7% in the third quarter, selling 407,496 shares and retaining 703,335 shares valued at about $278.8 million.
• Other major institutional investors increased or initiated positions, and institutions collectively own 79.82% of the company. Insiders sold 54,210 shares worth about $20.8 million over the past 90 days.
• Analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with a $397.49 average price target, but Bank of America says Palo Alto needs to beat estimates by at least 3% and raise its outlook to support its premium valuation.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 36.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 703,335 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 407,496 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.09% of Palo Alto Networks worth $278,849,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the second quarter worth $25,833,462,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,979,497 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $12,610,748,000 after acquiring an additional 1,493,179 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 0.9% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 22,681,876 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $7,734,973,000 after acquiring an additional 205,123 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 8.7% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,778,963 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $2,993,802,000 after acquiring an additional 706,003 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Palo Alto Networks during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,968,304,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 27,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $391.60, for a total transaction of $10,769,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 117,750 shares in the company, valued at $46,110,900. This represents a 18.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director James Goetz sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.68, for a total transaction of $7,533,600.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 54,210 shares of company stock worth $20,823,029. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

Here are a few of the latest stories about PANW:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies lowered its price target to $400 from $450 but maintained a Buy rating, while Bank of America reiterated Buy with a $420 target. Jefferies analyst action Bank of America’s outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America says Palo Alto must beat quarterly estimates by at least 3% and raise its outlook to justify its premium valuation, setting a high bar for results. Bank of America’s outlook
• Negative Sentiment: A Zacks comparison favored Cloudflare over Palo Alto, citing Cloudflare’s stronger revenue-growth outlook and rising AI-security demand—potentially adding competitive pressure on PANW. PANW vs. NET: Which Cybersecurity Stock Should You Buy Right Now?

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC cut their target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $201.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $326.00 to $384.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $450.00 price target (up from $400.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $410.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Mizuho set a $415.00 price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Forty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.49.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Performance

Palo Alto Networks stock opened at $322.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 632.68, a PEG ratio of 9.59 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $367.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $276.51. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.57 and a 52 week high of $432.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The network technology company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.04. Palo Alto Networks had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 2.67%. The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2027 guidance at 4.160-4.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.32 earnings per share for the current year.

About Palo Alto Networks

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is a cybersecurity company that provides products and services to help organizations protect their networks, cloud environments, devices and applications. Its offerings include next-generation firewalls, cloud security tools, secure access services and platforms for detecting and responding to cyber threats. The company's product portfolio includes Prisma for cloud and network security and Cortex for security operations, including threat detection and response. It also provides cybersecurity consulting and incident-response services through Unit 42.

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