Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW) Shares Up 4.6% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Palo Alto Networks shares rose 4.6% to $347.13 in mid-day trading, giving the company a market capitalization of approximately $282.9 billion.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.48; individual targets range as high as $421.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations with adjusted EPS of $0.85 versus $0.79 expected and revenue of $3 billion, up 31.1% year over year. However, insiders sold roughly $27.2 million of stock over the last quarter.

Shares of Palo Alto Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) traded up 4.6% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $347.70 and last traded at $347.13. 7,111,164 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 21% from the average daily volume of 8,971,252 shares. The stock had previously closed at $331.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PANW shares. Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating and set a $350.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Northland Securities raised their price objective on shares of Palo Alto Networks from $190.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $315.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Capital One Financial set a $421.00 target price on shares of Palo Alto Networks and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of Palo Alto Networks in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $331.48.

Palo Alto Networks Stock Up 4.6%

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $308.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.47. The firm has a market cap of $282.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 284.53, a PEG ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ:PANW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 2nd. The network technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. Palo Alto Networks had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 10.53%. Palo Alto Networks's revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. Palo Alto Networks has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.770-3.790 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.960-0.980 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Palo Alto Networks, Inc. will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palo Alto Networks

In other Palo Alto Networks news, EVP Dipak Golechha sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.56, for a total value of $1,447,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 145,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,058,590. This trade represents a 3.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Helle Thorning-Schmidt sold 700 shares of Palo Alto Networks stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.85, for a total value of $242,795.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,898 shares in the company, valued at $2,045,721.30. The trade was a 10.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 101,239 shares of company stock valued at $27,174,360 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Palo Alto Networks in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. increased its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 88.2% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 143 shares of the network technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in Palo Alto Networks in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its position in Palo Alto Networks by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 146 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC lifted its stake in Palo Alto Networks by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 154 shares of the network technology company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. 79.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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