Private Capital Advisors Inc. Has $25.41 Million Stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. $PANW

Key Points

• Private Capital Advisors Inc. trimmed its Palo Alto Networks stake by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 14,440 shares and leaving it with 137,958 shares worth about $25.4 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with 79.82% of PANW shares held by institutions; several large investors, including Vanguard, Victory Capital, and Amundi, also increased their positions.
• Analysts remain bullish on Palo Alto Networks, with multiple firms raising price targets and the stock trading near its 12-month high after a 3.0% gain.

Private Capital Advisors Inc. cut its stake in Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Free Report) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 137,958 shares of the network technology company's stock after selling 14,440 shares during the quarter. Palo Alto Networks accounts for about 2.6% of Private Capital Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Private Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Palo Alto Networks were worth $25,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PANW. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,929,063 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $12,512,533,000 after acquiring an additional 2,659,100 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 108.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,467,692 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $502,263,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282,738 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter worth approximately $162,161,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the third quarter worth approximately $151,682,000. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Palo Alto Networks by 25.1% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 3,532,201 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $750,875,000 after acquiring an additional 708,332 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Palo Alto Networks Trading Up 3.0%

PANW opened at $260.58 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $212.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 143.97, a PEG ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 0.77. The company's 50 day moving average is $183.29 and its 200 day moving average is $182.32. Palo Alto Networks, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.57 and a 12-month high of $261.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $802,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 150,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,103,105. This trade represents a 3.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James J. Goetz sold 22,684 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.41, for a total transaction of $3,729,476.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 52,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,631,525. The trade was a 30.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 30,756 shares of company stock valued at $5,076,355 in the last 90 days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $200.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $185.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Palo Alto Networks currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $226.33.

Key Stories Impacting Palo Alto Networks

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on PANW to $285 from $235 and kept an overweight rating, signaling further upside potential for the cybersecurity leader.
• Positive Sentiment: Truist also boosted its price target ahead of results, reinforcing Wall Street’s improving view of Palo Alto Networks’ earnings and growth outlook. Palo Alto Networks (PANW) Gets Major Price Target Boost from Truist Ahead of Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies said customers at the company’s Ignite On Tour event showed strong interest in PANW’s AI security offerings, with acquisitions Portkey and Koi Security attracting attention and little resistance to recent firewall price increases.
• Positive Sentiment: Investor commentary continued to highlight cybersecurity as a durable budget priority, with Palo Alto Networks added to Josh Brown’s “best stocks” list alongside other leading security names.
• Neutral Sentiment: One article framed PANW’s strong year-to-date outperformance versus Palantir as a possible rebalancing candidate, but the piece was more about relative performance than a new company-specific catalyst. Palo Alto Networks Is Beating Palantir by 60% This Year. Is a Rebalancing Imminent?
• Neutral Sentiment: Company insider selling by CAO Josh D. Paul was disclosed, though the 400-share sale was relatively small versus his remaining holdings and does not by itself signal a major shift in fundamentals.
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary also pointed to rising AI security demand for products like Prisma AIRS and XSIAM, supporting the long-term growth narrative rather than changing near-term results.

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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